


Is It Still Me That Makes You Sweat?

by TheNameIsBritney



Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Kissing Lessons, M/M, Unresolved Romantic Tension, bad boy with a soft heart of gold, he still has anxiety tho, roman's kind of a nerd, virgil's an edgy boi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-19
Updated: 2018-10-21
Packaged: 2019-06-29 17:12:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 31,826
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15733839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheNameIsBritney/pseuds/TheNameIsBritney
Summary: Human/High school AU: Edgy Bad boy!Virgil and Nerdy Theatre Geek!RomanVirgil and Roman both get placed in detention together and Virgil decides to impart some of his...romantic knowledge unto Roman.





	1. Chapter 1

Roman  _loved_ school. 

He wouldn’t quite call himself a ‘nerd’ per say...not about most things at least. But he enjoyed school. He had a good group of friends and was generally well-liked, his teachers liked him, and school just came easily for him. He was used to what high school felt like. 

Until the first day of his senior year. 

Roman got out of his car and reached into his pocket to text his friends to tell them he’d arrived when he felt an arm drop around his shoulders. He grinned and looked, seeing his best friend Damien standing beside him, dressed in a white shirt and yellow cardigan despite the hot weather. 

“God, Dee, looking at you is making  _me_ sweat.” Roman remarked playfully, shoving his friend off of him and locking his car. Damien merely smirked. “Logan’s at his locker. We should meet him there.” Roman said, looking at Damien who was no longer looking at him but rather looking behind him. 

Roman raised his eyebrows. “What are-” 

Roman turned around to look at what Damien was so enthralled by and he felt his jaw drop. Why? 

Well, because coming out of a sleek black car were perhaps three of the most beautiful people both Roman and Damien had ever seen.

The first person was Patton O’Connor - no surprise there. Roman and Patton had been classmates for two years now. Patton was very well-liked around the school and was known for being kind to almost anyone. He was head of the yearbook committee and was known for knowing every students name. However, standing next to Patton were two unfamiliar faces. 

The first, Roman didn’t pay much attention to - mostly because he had glasses covering his face. The only distinct feature Roman spotted was a beauty mark on his left cheekbone. He was holding the largest Starbucks cup Roman had ever seen and was wearing a grey pocket tee and black jeans. 

The boy standing next to him however made Roman actually drool a little (though he would never admit it). He was  _perfect._ Dark, wavy hair that looked mussed but still  _perfect_  moving in the warm summer wind, dark eyes that Roman could already see himself getting lost in, and a smirk that made Roman feel butterflies all over his chest. 

He had to find out who he was. 

“-oman? Roman?” Roman was shocked back to life by Damien who smacked him upside the head. He turned and met his best friend’s eyes, smiling sheepishly.

“Sorry, Dami, what were you saying?” Damien rolled his eyes.

“Glad you finally decided to join me in the land of the living.” Damien remarked sarcastically, “The bell is gonna go off soon. We should find Logan.” Roman nodded and turned back around, walking up the steps and into the school with Damien, though the boy from the parking lot was the only person occupying his thoughts. 

* * *

 

It’s at second period AP US History class when Roman sees Parking Lot Cutie (PLC, as he’s dubbed him in his mind) again. He turned to Logan and nodded his head in PLC’s direction.

“Lo, do you know anything about the new kids?” Roman asked quietly, watching as Logan pulled out his APUSH binder and placed it gently on his desk.

“Roman, you know I don’t partake in petty gossip about my fellow schoolmates.” Logan said, not taking his eyes off of where he was writing the date in neat blue numbers on the top left hand corner of his page. “...But I did hear that the new kids are twins. Virgil and Remy Alexander. They transferred from some fancy school down in Orlando.” Logan turned to look at Roman who’s eyes were fixed on the new kid and he raised an eyebrow. “Why?” 

Roman turned to look at Logan.

“N-No reason.” Roman said, fiddling with his pen. “Do you know...which one he is?” Roman asked, gesturing towards the new kid with his pen. Logan looked over and pushed up his glasses.

“That one is...Virgil. I think.” 

 _Virgil._  It somehow suit him perfectly. Roman watched as PL-Virgil popped a piece of gum in his class and began to blow slow bubbles. Uh oh.

“Mr. Alexander, if you could refrain from chewing on that...disgusting cavity inducing  _mess_ , it would be much appreciated.” Mr. Briggs remarked, his lip raised in a sneer. 

Virgil merely smiled in response. Though it wasn’t a kind, apologetic smile. It was the kind of smile you gave when someone you didn’t like got hurt. He took the gum out of his mouth and sauntered over to the bin, dropping it before walking back to his desk and settling down once again. 

Mr. Briggs, seemingly satisfied with this, began his lesson. Roman however took no notice, his eyes firmly fixed on Virgil.

As the lesson progressed, Roman eventually managed to tear his eyes away from Virgil, choosing to actually pay attention to what Mr. Briggs was saying.

“...and when Christopher Columbus so bravely found our great country-“

“Excuse me, sir, how can you find a country that already has people living in it?” A hush fell over the room as all eyes landed on the person who’d asked the question. It had been Virgil. “He murdered and enslaved tons of people. He was a racist who deserved to-“

“Mr. Alexander, that’s enough!” Mr. Briggs exclaimed, his eyebrows knitted so close together they almost formed one entity. “We do not use that language in a school environment. Do you want to stay behind after school on Wednesday or would you rather smoke behind a grocery store or whatever it is you hooligans like to do?”

Virgil raised a challenging eyebrow and simply shrugged, flitting his eyes back down to his textbook.

“Now, if we could continue our lesson-“

“Every one of the founding fathers were racist, homophobic slave owners who stole Mount Rushmore from Native American people.” 

“That is  _it_ , Mr. Alexander, detention! Next Wednesday, 3:15pm, you will be sat in this classroom! I’m sure your miscreant friends will miss your company.” Mr. Briggs practically spat, possibly even more enraged at the lack of reaction elicited by Virgil. 

Everyone was staring at Virgil with wide eyes - including Roman. Everything he’d said had been completely true but...no one had dared to stand up to Mr. Briggs and his inflated sense of patriotism before. Roman...kind of liked it. Logan, however, was shaking his head.

“He’s bad news, Roman.” Logan whispered quietly. “You should hear the stuff I’ve heard about him. He’s quite...promiscuous. And after that display, he’s also rather disrespectful.” Roman’s lower lip jutted out just a bit and he furrowed his eyebrows.

“There’s nothing wrong with being a little promiscuous!” Roman defended quickly, sitting up in his chair. “And everything he said was right! Mr. Briggs is just a  _special_  type of asshole.” 

Logan smirked at that, though he tried to keep his composure. 

“I know that, Roman, but...I’m just saying getting involved with him could do you more harm than good.” Logan shrugged before attempting to refocus his attention on whatever page of the textbook Mr. Briggs was reading out of. 

Roman tapped his pencil eraser on his desk as he pondered Logan’s words. Maybe it was best that he stay away...

But that didn’t mean he couldn’t look, right?

* * *

 

After that day in AP US History, Roman basically forgot about Virgil, choosing instead to focus on his school work, preparing his audition for the new school musical (they were doing Newsies!),  _and_  recruiting writers and editors for the school Newspaper. Needless to say Roman was very busy - and it was only the second week of school!

Roman arrived at school Monday morning with a large iced black coffeee in one hand, his messenger bag haphazardly thrown over his shoulder, and his eyes half shut from the lack of sleep he’d gotten the previous weekend. 

He got to his locker and greeted Logan and Damien with a half-hearted grunt before burying his head inside of his locker. Damien and Logan shared a look and sighed. This was a pretty common occurrence. Roman’s way of working was akin to ‘all at once or not at all’. 

“Morning, Ro.” Logan said cautiously, eyeing Roman sympathetically. “You feeling okay?” 

Roman pulled his head out from his locker and looked at Logan, nodding through a yawn. 

“Fine, fine...sleepy. I’ll be okay.” Roman murmured, taking a long, slow sip of his coffee. Damien raised an eyebrow.

“Okay, well...what did you think of the homework that Mr. P set for this weekend?” Damien asked, searching through his backpack for his notebook. “I don’t know if I answered the question about CBT right or not.” 

“Oh, let me take a loo-” 

“¡Carajo!” 

Logan and Damien startled as they turned to look at Roman who looked fully awake and in a state of panic. They looked at each other before looking back at Roman. 

“¿Que pasa? Is there a salamander in your locker again? Can I have it?” Damien asked, peering into Roman’s locker. Roman paid him no mind and scrambled through his bag for his AP Psych notebook, flipping it to the most recent page.

At the very top it read “Treatment and Therapy Homework” with the date neatly scrawled on the top right-hand side. But the page itself was...completely empty. 

“Shit, I...I forgot to do the homework for Mr. Picani’s class!” Roman groaned, slapping his forehead and groaning. “I was so busy rehearsing my monologue and song and...talking to the new writers of the newspaper. And my dad wanted me to help out at the garage  _again_  and I guess I just...forgot to do it.” Damien and Logan shared a look. 

Mr. Picani was easily one of their favourite teachers in the school but he wasn’t a pushover by any means. He refused to accept late turn-in’s unless on very special circumstances and rarely let kids fly by without having handed in their homework. Pretty much...Roman was screwed. 

“Um...do you wanna copy my answers?” Damien asked, holding his notebook tight to his chest. He knew Roman would never do that but...he didn’t really know what else to say in this situation. Roman shook his head and groaned loudly, shoving his notebook back into his messenger bag.

“No, no, it’s fine, thank you Dami.” Roman sighed, leaning his back against his locker with his eyes closed and his mouth downturned in a deep frown. “I have to deal with the consequences. Plus, he would know if I copied your answers.”

Logan gave Roman a sympathetic pat on the shoulder anyway and they began their walk to their first class, Roman’s stomach filling with dread as the minutes ticked closer and closer to 3rd period. 

* * *

 

“...Have a good rest of the day! And don’t forget to leave your homework in the tray as you leave!” Mr. Picani grinned as the bell rang. He sat down at his desk and watched as his students dropped off either their notebooks or a single slip of paper into a neat tray labelled ‘Homework!’ that sat on the bottom left-hand corner of his desk. 

He was about to reach into his bag to begin marking another classes homework assignments when he saw Roman Kingsley - one of his favourite students from previous classes - walk up to his desk sheepishly. Emile smiled.

“What can I do for you, Roman?” He asked, smiling pleasantly. Roman didn’t return the smile.

“Um...well, you see, Mr. Picani, it appears as though I...” Roman looked around the room before looking down at Mr. Picani’s desk. “Iforgottodothehomeworkthisweekend! I’m so, so sorry! I-I was so busy, it simply slipped my mind and it will  _never_  happen again!” Emile’s smile faltered and he sighed, taking his glasses off.

“Now, Roman, there’s no need to be afraid of me.” Emile began, cleaning his glasses off before slipping them back on and giving Roman a kind look. “...but rules are rules. I barely give out homework and I have you two and a half days to finish a few textbook questions. I’m afraid I’m going to have to give you detention. This Wednesday in Mr. Briggs room, okay? Do you know where that is?” 

Roman nodded sadly and apologised once again before slinking out of Mr. Picani’s room.

 _Detention_. The word sounded dirty. He’d always been a good kid who did his work and never got in trouble and always got... _praised_. Being reprimanded was a flavour Roman had found out he didn’t like at all. 

At lunch, he filled Damien and Logan in on the situation before burying his face in his forearms, groaning quietly. Damien and Logan - both used to Roman’s dramaticism but not quite sure how to handle it still - looked at each other. Damien reached out and pet Roman’s elbow gently.

“It’s just one detention, Roman. As long as it doesn’t happen again...it won’t even go on your permanent record.” Logan said, pushing his glasses up and beginning to pick at his sandwich. “And it’s only for an hour, right? Just...do your homework or study or something and you’ll be out before you know it.” Damien nodded.

“It’ll be  _fine_.” Damien said, though he wasn’t quite sure how much he believed that. Roman looked up at them both skeptically before sighing.

“I suppose you’re right...I’ve definitely learnt my lesson, that’s for sure.” Roman mumbled, sitting up properly. “What could happen anyway?” 

* * *

 

Turns out, a lot could happen. ‘A lot’ meaning Roman could have detention at the exact same time as Virgil Alexander, aka hot new kid, aka hot DANGEROUS new kid. 

Roman walked into Mr. Briggs’ classroom on Wednesday at 3:15pm on the dot, his heart stopping in his chest when he saw Virgil already sat in a desk, leaning back and staring at his phone. Roman’s mind started buzzing with the gossip that he’d heard about Virgil. 

_I heard he punched some kid during study hall._

_I heard he left his old school cause he’d made out with every gay guy there and he wanted fresh meat._

_I heard that he and his twin brother are on the run from the police!_

You could fill an entire book series on things that Roman had heard about Virgil and Remi Alexander. Most likely they weren’t true, Roman knew that. But what if...

Roman took a seat on the opposite side of the classroom next to the window and took his own phone out, trying to distract himself by scrolling through Instagram before Mr. Briggs arrived.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and Mr. Briggs was standing there, a coffee mug in one hand and an alarm clock in the other. Odd. 

“Welcome to detention.” Mr. Briggs said, though his voice was anything  _but_ welcoming. “We have two rules here. First, your phones will go in this tray and stay right here on this desk. If you move them, I will know and you will be back in here tomorrow afternoon, understood?” 

Roman nodded quickly, his jaw clenched from fear. Mr. Briggs really was the  _worst_. 

“Good. Next, this clock is set to ring at exactly 4:15pm. Until this bell rings, neither of you are to move, speak, or do  _anything._ If I catch you doing any of these things before the bell rings, what will happen, Mr. Alexander?” 

Virgil rolled his eyes.

“We’ll be back here tomorrow afternoon.” Virgil droned, handing his iPhone to Mr. Briggs. 

When Mr. Briggs walked over to Roman’s desk, Roman quickly did the same, pouting slightly as he watched his least favourite teacher drop their phones into a tray on his desk. 

“Good to see you understand the simplest of rules.” Mr. Briggs sneered, “Now, I’ll be in the teachers lounge but if either of you move, I will know.” He walked out of the room, his cheap loafers clicking against the linoleum floor as he left. Roman allowed himself to take a slow, deep breath out once Mr. Briggs exited the room. He felt like he’d been tensing every single muscle he had. 

But there was another problem, Roman now realised.

He was alone.

In a room.

With Virgil.

Oh, this oughta be  _fun._


	2. Chapter 2

Virgil was almost bored to  _tears,_ sitting in his dumbass history teacher’s classroom just watching that stupid clock tick, willing the bell to ring. 

He leaned back in his chair and looked up at the ceiling, counting all the spots of mould he could see. 13. That was actually pretty disgusting. Virgil wrinkled his nose and resolved to look out the window instead, just past the head of the other student who was here. What was his name? Rowan? Ryan? …Roman! That was it. 

Virgil had seen him around since he’d transferred and, well, you could say he was slightly transfixed. There was just something about the way his light brown hair always looked so pristine and perfect, never a strand out of place. The way he smiled while walking down the halls like he had a secret - a secret Virgil desperately wanted to know. 

But Virgil had also seen him hanging around that nerdy kid with the glasses and another shorter kid who had an affinity for wearing sweaters even in the summer. Virgil guessed he couldn’t judge, though, his hands coming up to smooth the familiar leather jacket hanging around his shoulders. 

He’d even asked Patton about the kid, Roman, and hadn’t been  _too_  pleased at the results. 

“Yeah, I think he and Damien are dating…” Patton had said last week, eyebrows knitted together in thought. “They’ve been best friends forever ‘cause their moms are friends or something so…I guess they’re dating. It’s never been confirmed but everyone thinks so.”

So, that had been…disappointing. But Virgil could look, right?

He was  _staring_. 

Roman could feel Virgil’s eyes practically burning a hole through his temple as he tried, and failed, to focus on counting just how many history textbooks Mr. Briggs had in his giant bookshelf. 

Why was Virgil looking at him?! Did he have something on his face? Was he growing a pimple? It was getting harder and harder to ignore Virgil’s gaze and Roman could feel his cheeks heating up more and more every second. 

“Excuse me!” Roman said finally, turning his body in his chair to face Virgil who raised his eyebrows in response. “Could you stop staring at me?! It’s very…distracting! And rude. Didn’t your mother ever tell you it’s rude to stare?!” 

Virgil smirked. This oughta be interesting. 

“She did tell me that, yes.” Virgil said slowly, “…but I wasn’t staring at you. I was looking out the window.” Okay, so maybe that wasn’t  _completely_ true, but the look on Roman’s face was worth it.

“O-Oh…” Roman mumbled, his cheeks bright pink with embarrassment. He turned back around in his chair and kept his eyes firmly fixed on the desk in front of him.  _Why had he said anything?! Obviously, Virgil hadn’t been looking at him. Someone as cool as that…_

Virgil looked over at Roman and smiled slightly at how embarrassed he looked.  _Well…here goes nothing._

“You seem disappointed.” Virgil said suddenly, causing Roman to whip his head up and look at the other boy. 

“What?”

“You seem disappointed that I wasn’t looking at you.” Virgil said, a slow grin appearing on his features.

If Roman weren’t already the colour of a fire extinguisher, he sure would’ve been now.

“I-I wasn’t…that’s not…shut up!” Roman exclaimed, looking away from Virgil. “Let’s just go back to sitting in silence, please! I’d really like to avoid another detention.”

Oh.

So, maybe Virgil had crossed a line. Maybe Roman wasn’t even gay. Virgil had jumped to conclusions yet again. Maybe it was for the best that they just sit in silence, waiting for the bell to ring. Only 40 more minutes until…

“C-Can I ask you something?”

Virgil startled but regained his composure, turning his head to look at Roman once more. His heart was beating in his chest but he tried to make himself appear calm.

“Uh…sure.”

Roman looked mildly uncomfortable.

“I’ve heard…a lot of rumours. About you.” Roman started, picking at an uneven piece of wood on the desk. “I was wondering…”

“You were wondering which were true?” Virgil asked, turning his body fully to face Roman. He didn’t look  _angry_  which Roman took as a good sign. “Well…I  _did_ punch a guy during study hall today but that was just because he was bullying my best friend.” Roman mouthed ‘oh’ to himself and looked slightly guilty. Virgil smiled. 

“And Remi and I are not on the run from the police. My mom got a new job out here  _and_ we wanted to be nearer to my grandparents.” Virgil stood up and slowly walked towards Roman, taking a seat on a desk. There was now only one desk in between them. “And as for that other nasty little rumour… _no_ , I haven’t ‘made out’ with all the guys at Edgewater, though I have kissed a fair few of them.”  _Two._

At the mention of kissing, Virgil noted that a brand new shade of pink crossed Roman’s cheekbones and he looked away quickly, sucking his bottom lip into his mouth and nibbling on it. Well, that was interesting. 

Could it be possible that…Roman had never been kissed before? 

The prospect made Virgil’s heart race but for a different reason than before. Maybe…just  _maybe_  Virgil actually stood a chance. 

“Roman, have you ever kissed somebody before?” Virgil asked, steeling his nerves as best he could. Roman looked up, his eyes wide and lips slightly parted. “It’s okay if you haven’t.”

“I haven’t…yet. I’m always so busy with extracurriculars I never really have time to…” Roman trailed off, moving his hand in a circular motion. Of course he’d thought about it. Roman had had many crushes in the past - it was a consequence of having a big heart. But the fact of the matter was, he was always just too busy.

Roman looked at Virgil, expecting to see amusement on the other boy’s face. What he saw instead was a soft, kind smile and a strange look in his eyes. Roman found he rather liked it.

“If you want, I could give you some pointers. For when it actually  _does_  happen.” Virgil commented, taking a seat next to Roman and smiling tenderly. His brain was racing with  _what if he says no? I’ve definitely gone too far. He’s gonna hate me, Oh God, why do I always-_

“Sure.”

…Oh. Okay, then.

Virgil looked at Roman who moved his head slightly in a nod and he nodded back. 

“Okay, so…Step one: Trust.” Virgil said, leaning towards Roman slowly. “You have to trust the person that you’re kissing otherwise there’s really no point.” 

Roman nodded, eyebrows furrowed. He mouthed the word ‘trust’ to himself and Virgil found his eyes darting down to look at Roman’s pink lips.  _Bad, Virgil, stop that!_

“Step two: Proximity.” Virgil said, taking a brief pause. This one was the tricky part. “You have to look out for signs that the other person wants to kiss you.” Roman nodded.

“What are the signs?” Virgil bit his lip. 

“Well…they might…sit a little closer to you.” 

Virgil shuffled just minutely closer to Roman, close enough to  _just_ feel his body heat. 

“They might find a reason to touch you.”

Virgil hesitated before sliding his arm around the back of Roman’s chair slowly. They weren’t touching but they also weren’t… _not_  touching. Roman’s breath stilled and his heart was thrumming.

“They also might…lean in a little bit.” 

Virgil’s voice had lowered to a soft whisper at that point and he was slowly leaning in. Roman’s eyes had fallen shut and he was slightly afraid that Virgil could hear how hard his fast was beating. He found himself leaning in further and further until they were barely a centimetre apart. And then…

**_BRIIIIIIING._ **

The sound shocked both Virgil and Roman so much that Virgil practically jumped back, standing up. He glanced at the clock. 4:15pm. Detention was over. Virgil wanted to punch that stupid clock so bad he also  _really_ didn’t wanna get another detention for vandalism or destruction of property. 

Instead, he fixed on a trademark smirk and walked up to the clock, pressing the ‘snooze’ button and grabbing his phone out of the tray. He turned around and looked at Roman who was sitting stock-still, eyes wide and lips still slightly pursed. He looked  _gorgeous_. Virgil smiled and picked up his bag, giving Roman a two-fingered salute.

“Well, until next time, Princey.” He winked before turning on his heel and sauntering out of the classroom. 

Roman was left alone in the classroom, nothing but the tick-tick-ticking of the clock to accompany him. He felt cold all over after Virgil had so quickly pulled away just as they were about to…kiss? So much had happened over the past hour and Roman was having trouble processing but one thing was for sure.

Roman was  _fucked_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things seem to be heating up!! Tension will be resolved in the next part! I'm not sure if next part will be the final part but this is gonna be a pretty short one! <3 
> 
> Comments and kudos are very much appreciated!
> 
> \- Brit xx


	3. Chapter 3

The week that followed the ‘almost kiss’ was… _strange_  to say the least. At least, Roman thought it was. Whenever he saw Virgil around school, he got the brightest, most  _obvious_ blush high on his cheekbones and he found he needed to look and walk briskly away before he actually burst into flames. 

…Or tried to actually kiss him like Roman so desperately wanted to. 

Truth be told, he wasn’t quite sure what was stopping him. Virgil had confirmed that the rumours weren’t true, so what did Roman have to be afraid of? 

Okay, a lot of things, actually. 

Roman had never been kissed before. He’d never even been asked out on a date. And though he’d came close once in 10th grade (Carlos Ramirez had asked him to homecoming and even though he admired Carlos’ thick hair and sparkly eyes, he was just  _way too busy_ with the drama club), Roman was overall very inexperienced. 

What if Virgil expected things from him Roman couldn’t deliver? It was a possibility wasn’t? Virgil was still a high school boy after all and Roman had heard a lot of things about high school boys. 

This was all growing to be much too stressful.

_Oh, God, I crossed a line._

That was the only thing circling through Virgil’s mind the entire week after his detention tryst with Roman. Virgil had left detention feeling almost on top of the world. After all, it seemed like Roman was responding to his flirting, maybe even enjoying it? And Virgil didn’t think he’d imagined the way Roman had been leaning in too…

But then Thursday morning came and Virgil locked eyes with Roman in the hallway. But before Virgil could walk over or even  _smile_ at the boy, Roman looked away and scurried off like he was late for dinner with the queen. It was all too confusing for Virgil and frankly? He was overwhelmed. 

 _Maybe Roman didn’t want to kiss me. Maybe he isn’t even gay! No, he’s…definitely gay._ Virgil thought, keeping his eyes down as he walked through the hallway.  _But maybe he doesn’t like me. Or he likes someone else? What if he was asking for tips because he was planning on asking someone else to kiss him? Oh, God._

Virgil finally reached his locker, his face masterfully schooled into an expression of calm aloofness - though on the inside he was screaming. 

It wasn’t common for Virgil to be so…outgoing. Especially when it came to guys and  _especially_ after what had happened with his ex-boyfriend. But there was something about Roman that made Virgil…different. And Virgil knew that he had to have some type of effect on Roman too.

He’d seen the way Roman carried himself in classes and in the halls, with his friends. The Roman he’d met in detention and the Roman he’d witnessed outside of that room were almost like two different people - Virgil just wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing just yet.

 _Another day of successfully avoiding Virgil’s gaze._ Roman thought as he emptied out his messenger bag at the end of the day. It was Friday (a whole week and a half since the ‘almost kiss’) and Roman was getting ready to join Logan at the library for a study session. 

He was about to close his locker, taking a second to look at himself in the small mirror he’d hung up on the first day of school. As he primped and fixed his hair, he saw another face come into the mirror just behind him. Virgil. 

Roman jumped and turned around, eyes wide and cheeks bright red ( _Curse you, blood vessels!)_. 

“V-Virgil!” 

Virgil smiled back and leaned up against the wall beside Roman’s locker, trying to look like someone with a normal heart rate. 

“Hi.” Virgil bit his lip and scoured Roman’s face for anything remotely negative. So far…so good? “You’ve been avoiding me.” 

Roman swallowed thickly and looked away. 

“N-No, I haven’t! The fact that you think I’ve been avoiding you is absurd! I-I just have…places to go. People to see. I’m a very busy man.” Roman said quickly, the words falling out of his mouth like puzzle pieces that just didn’t fit together. Virgil huffed out a quiet chuckle. 

“You know, for such a good actor…” Virgil said, his heart soaring when Roman looked up hopefully at the compliment. “…You are a really  _bad_  liar.” Roman deflated and his lips fell into a pout. A pout Virgil  _almost_ couldn’t resist.

“What are you doing right now?” 

At the question, Roman closed his locker slowly but didn’t walk away, leaning against it. 

“I actually have some homework that-” 

“Great, so you’re not doing anything.” Virgil grinned at Roman and quickly but gently took Roman’s hand in his own. “Wanna come on an adventure?” 

Roman blushed at the contact but couldn’t resist the small, tentative smile that grew on his face. 

“You know what? I always considered myself quite adventurous.” Roman replied quietly, biting his lip. The electricity buzzing between the two of them was palpable.

Virgil squeezed Roman’s hand gently and they began walking to the carpark. Virgil led Roman to his car and unlocked it, opening the door for Roman.

“What a gentleman.” 

“Mmm, don’t tell anybody. I have a reputation to uphold.” Virgil joked, grinning at Roman who let out a laugh. Virgil wanted that sound to be his ringtone.

Virgil got into the drivers seat and pulled out of the parking lot. They drove in silence, the air heady with opportunity.  

“Do you wanna play some music?” Virgil asked, gesturing to the aux chord connected to his car speakers. Roman smiled self deprecatingly. 

“I-I don’t think we have exactly the same taste.” Roman said with a shrug and a slight chuckle. 

Virgil shrugged and plugged his own phone in, pressing play. 

_Boys and girls of every age,_

_Wouldn’t you like to see something strange?_

Virgil scrambled to turn the music off. He’d been listening to the Nightmare Before Christmas soundtrack in the car on his way to school and he’d completely forgot! Shit, Roman probably thought he was a dork or some kind of Disney ner-

“Come with us and you will see, in our town of Hallooooweeen!” Roman sang along happily, a wide smile on his face. “I love the Nightmare Before Christmas!” 

If Virgil hadn’t been driving, he definitely would’ve been hypnotised by Roman’s dulcet tones. Virgil smiled and began tapping along to the rhythm on his steering wheel.

“Me too, it’s actually one of my favourite movies.” Virgil admitted, allowing himself to look over at Roman for a brief second. Roman looked  _beautiful_  in the midday sun, his eyes sparkling and bright. 

A few minutes of singing and laughing and talking later, they fell back into silence. Roman looked out the windows and watched the trees and houses pass them by.

He turned to look at Virgil who was smiling calmly as he drove. He realised Virgil hasn’t told him where they were going. Part of him loved the romance and mystery of it but the other part just desperately wanted to know where they were going.

“So…where are we going?” Roman asked, “Somewhere near? Far?”

“If you start singing that song from Titanic, you’re walking home.” Virgil quipped, smirking. Roman laughed loudly, shaking his head. Virgil wanted to bottle the sound. “I’ll give you a hint though. We’re going to my favourite place in the world.”

They continued driving, listening to music and talking. Within a few minutes, Virgil was parking the car on the side of the road.

Roman looked out his window and raised his eyebrows, only seeing an old florist, a cafe, and a grocery store. Something about the scene in front of him felt familiar to Roman.

“This is your favourite place in the world?”

Virgil smiled.

“You’re on the wrong side of the car. Follow me.” Virgil got out of the car and waited for Roman to come out and join him.

He reached out a hand and smiled when Roman took it almost immediately. They stood there for a second, looking at each other, before Virgil began leading Roman through a gate, into a playground. 

Roman looked around at the empty playground in front of him. The monkey bars, once painted a bright candy apple red, were now peeling, exposing the grey metal underneath. There was a jungle gym that stood taller than all 6′1″ of Roman’s stature. A bright yellow plastic slide stood under a large oak tree. It looked like it had begun to dip, probably from years and years of carrying the weight of excitable toddlers and children. Something about the atmosphere felt like home. 

Roman looked over at Virgil and saw him looking in the distance at a set of old swings. The seats were made of black rubber and the chains were covered in a sheet of thick, hard plastic (probably to avoid rust or…something). Roman spotted a small, nostalgic smile on Virgil’s face. It made his heartbeat quicken. 

“Wait, I have a question.” At that, Virgil turned to face Roman, eyebrows raised. “If you moved here from Orlando a couple weeks ago, then how can this be your favourite place in the world?”

Virgil simply smiled and pulled Roman to the swings, sitting down on one of the old rubber seats. He gestured for Roman to take a seat, which he did. 

“I used to live in that house down the road.” Virgil said softly, pointing in the distance to a nearby suburb. The house he was pointing to was painted a soft violet with a white roof and shutters. Picturesque. “When Remy and I were 6. We used to come here every single day to play on the swings until we got motion sick or had to go home for dinner. We moved to Orlando when we were 9.” Roman mouthed a silent ‘Oh’ in realisation and they began to swing lightly.

It was a few moments before Virgil spoke again.

“Actually, I have a memory of this place. I was 6 and Remy was sick with a cold so he had to stay home with my mom.” Virgil started, looking up at the sky as he swung slowly. “I just remember being so, so sad without him. I was swinging all by myself when suddenly this other little boy came up to me. I thought he was gonna bully me or make fun of me or make me get off the swing.” 

Roman raised his eyebrows.

“Um…did he?”

“No.” Virgil smiled at Roman, like he was smiling at an old friend. “He just sat on the swing next to me, the swing you’re sitting on right now, and introduced himself to me. He said that I looked upset and that his parents told him that whenever someone looked upset or in need, it was his job to…”

“Save them.” Roman whispered, his eyes widening. He remembered that day, clear as crystal. He looked at Virgil who was staring at Roman, a stunned look on his face. “I remember that. I was playing in the sandbox with Damien and Logan and…you looked so  _sad_.” 

Silence.

They sat there on the swings, simply staring at one another. There was an added level of intimacy that neither of them wanted to bring up. 

This was a lot more real than either of them had expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 3! The response after part 2 was so fucking amazing!! All the messages and comments I received actually made me feel like 100% more confident about this fic and my writing so thank you so, so much! I hope y’all enjoy this chapter!
> 
> If you guys want to follow me on Tumblr (@romanticsanders), I upload all the chapters there as well! It would mean the world to me if y'all could reblog and comment over there too! But it's not a given <3
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated!
> 
> \- Brit xx


	4. Chapter 4

The two of them sat there, revelling in their shared memory of each other from their childhood, neither one truly believing it happened. 

“We met when we were 6.” Roman said, his cheeks pink and eyes sparkling as he turned to look at Virgil. “That must mean…I don’t know, it feels like…fate.”

Virgil raised his eyebrows and looked at Roman. Any witty or sarcastic retort he had planned dissipated at the sight of Roman grinning at him so  _beautifully_ in the late afternoon sun. He smiled instead.

“Maybe you’re right.” He replied.

Roman and Virgil both looked away from one another, Virgil’s eyes dropping to the sand beneath them and Roman looking up at the clouds in the sky as they gently drifted past. 

Roman so desperately wanted to say something. To ask Virgil what exactly were they doing? Was this a date? Were they…friends? He’d been so confused since that day in detention that…

“So, you remember those tips I taught you?” Virgil asked, avoiding Roman’s eyes and staring at some trees instead. Roman whipped his head around to look at Virgil who looked shy all of a sudden. Roman grinned.

He got up from his swing and walked the short distance to Virgil’s, placing one hand on the chain and sliding it down so their hands were barely a centimetre apart. 

“Step one: Trust.” Roman said softly, his eyes trained on Virgil’s every move. “If you don’t trust the person you’re kissing, there’s no point.” And I trust you. 

Roman didn’t  _say_ that but oh, did he want to. 

Virgil hummed and finally looked up at Roman, smiling.

“Mhm. You have a good memory, Princey.” Roman blushed but kept his composure. 

“Step two: Proximity.” Roman continued, sliding his hand down so his hand surrounded Virgil’s. His other hand came up to bracket Virgil’s left hand. “You have to look for signs that someone wants to kiss you.” Virgil smirked and looked up into Roman’s eyes. 

“What exactly are the signs? I seem to be experiencing some…short term memory loss.” Virgil asked, his voice just above a whisper. Roman smiled.

“Well, they might sit a little closer to you. Touch you a little bit.” Roman said quietly. As he did, he slowly began moving closer and closer to Virgil. The angle was awkward. Roman was standing at 6′1″ and Virgil was sitting on a swing. But it still  _felt_ perfect. “And they might…lean in.” 

_Closer…_

_Closer…_

Then, within the next second, Roman’s lips were on Virgil’s, pressing lightly at first. Hesitant. 

Roman suddenly understood all the cliche’s. He swore he could hear music in the background. Swelling violins and piano melodies and a chorus of angels. He saw fireworks burst in his eyes as he pressed closer to Virgil and their kiss became more than a press of lips against lips. 

Virgil had kissed guys before (two, if we were being exact) but it had never felt like this. His first kiss had been with Jeremy Figgis in 6th grade on a dare. Hardly a scene out of a rom com. His second kiss had been with Aidan Christianson. He’d been the son of one of his moms friends. 

But kissing Roman was so,  _so_  different. With Jeremy, it was the shortest of pecks. Lips pressed together tautly, more of a headbutt than anything else. With Aidan it had been soft and…nice. But that was it. There was no chemistry there, just two curious boys. 

But now, sitting at the very spot they’d met 11 years ago, Virgil felt he understood all of canon’s greatest romances, as cheesy as that may seem. 

His hand came up to rest on Roman’s waist, the other on the back of his neck, pulling him closer. Roman cupped Virgil’s cheeks as they kissed for what seemed like  _ever._ Neither of them wanted to stop.

Unfortunately, they had to.

Not because either of them had pulled away or anything but…simply because, well, Virgil was on a swing set. Swing sets are not known for being particularly stable. All it took was one enthusiastic lean from Roman and… _boom._

“Ah…” Virgil groaned, squinting his eyes and bringing a hand up to rub his head from the impact of falling off the swing and onto the grass below. 

His legs were still caught in the seat of the swing, the plastic digging uncomfortably into his calves. He also noticed a heavy weight on top of him. He opened his eyes and found Roman on top of him, his eyes wide and eyebrows furrowed, almost as though he couldn’t comprehend what had just happened.

It took Roman a second to process what exactly had happened. One second they were kissing, and the next they were on the floor, Roman on top of them and their legs tangled together on top of the swing. Realising that he was currently crushing his…crush (excuse the pun), Roman rolled off of Virgil and sat on the grass beside him, his eyes wide and cheeks flushed. 

 _He’d just had his first kiss!_ And then…fallen on top of him. Well…you win some, you lose some, right?

“Are you okay, Virgil?” Roman asked, getting up onto his knees and kneeling beside Virgil. He brought a hand to the back of Virgil’s head to check for blood and breathed out a soft sigh of relief when all he felt was hair. 

Virgil chuckled and shook his head, looking up at Roman. 

“I guess I just fell for you.” Virgil mumbled, grinning at the ridiculousness of it all. Roman let out a boisterous laugh. He blushed and shook his head. He might’ve been spending too much time with Patton. 

“I mean, I think I should be saying that. I fell on top of you.” Roman said softly, grabbing Virgil’s hand. He stood up and helped gently tug Virgil so they were both standing upright. 

Roman opened his mouth to apologise for the fall but was interrupted when Virgil, still holding his hand, pulled him close and kissed him once again. Roman smiled and wrapped his arms around Virgil’s shoulders.

After a few seconds, Virgil pulled away and Roman found himself chasing his (very soft, perfect) lips. 

“Roman Kingsley,” Virgil started quietly, taking his right hand and pressing a gentle kiss to the knuckle. “I know you like drama and romance so…I wanted to ask you, here, in the place where I guess we  _actually_ first met, will you go out with me?” 

Roman grinned, pulling Virgil close once more so that his forehead was resting gently against Virgil’s. 

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 4! Kind of a short one but I hope it’s worth it! 
> 
> The title is from ‘Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off by Panic! At The Disco
> 
> The time difference between uploading the new chapters on ao3 vs Tumblr is only about a few minutes but if you wanna get the new chapter as soon as possible, feel free to message me on Tumblr and ask me to tag you in the fic! My URL is @romanticsanders <3 of course you don't have to follow me or ask me to tag you but it would be nice if you could reblog!
> 
> Comments and kudos are appreciated (as always)! 
> 
> Thank you again for all the amazing support I've had from you guys for this fic so far! I'm so glad people like it omg
> 
> \- Brit xx


	5. Chapter 5

After that, Virgil drove Roman home. Roman tried not to freak out too hard about how they’d held hands for practically the entire ride.

Okay, Roman didn’t even try. As soon as he got to his room he’d squealed and jumped onto his bed. But who could blame him? He had a boyfriend now!

“Roman, can you keep the screaming to a minimum?” Roman heard his sister Reagan shout through their shared bathroom. “I’m trying to study!” Roman rolled his eyes and shut his bathroom door before flopping back onto his bed and sighing. 

He couldn’t  _wait_ to get to school tomorrow.

* * *

 The next morning at school, Roman walked into the building with an extra skip to his step, thinking about when he would get to see Virgil. 

He glided down the halls to his locker smoothly, not a care in the world. He reached his locker and opened it, grabbing his notebooks and books for first and second period. As he turned to check his reflection in the mirror, he felt an arm wrap itself around his waist and he blushed and grinned. 

He turned and saw, as expected, Virgil stood next to him in all his leather-bound glory. Roman took in Virgil’s soft smile and his half-lidded, sleepy eyes and he couldn’t resist. He leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to Virgil’s lips. It ended as soon as it had began but it was still  _perfect_. 

“Good morning to you too.” Virgil mumbled sleepily, turning so his back was against the wall next to Roman’s locker. “How’d you sleep last night?” 

Roman smiled.

“I had the most wonderful dream.” Roman began, “I dreamt that a handsome man in leather armour swept me off my feet and drove me to a field…where we’d found out we’d actually met before.”

Virgil smirked.

“Oh? And how did this dream end?” 

Roman snorted and nudged Virgil gently. 

“You know? I can’t really remember.” Roman shrugged and closed his locker after giving his hair a quick touch-up. He turned to Virgil and smiled mischievously. Virgil rolled his eyes.

“Let me remind you then.” Virgil said quietly before taking Roman’s hand and pulling him in for a soft kiss. Roman placed his arms around Virgil’s shoulders and sighed. Roman was sure that he’d died and somehow gone to heaven because there was nothing that could top this moment. 

“Ahem.” 

The two boys pulled apart. Virgil’s eyes were wide and his cheeks were flushed whilst Roman just looked slightly perturbed to have been interrupted. 

He looked behind Virgil and cleared his throat, smiling sheepishly at who he saw. Logan and Damien.

“Oh! Um…morning, you two!” Roman said, smiling and rubbing the back of his neck. “Have you both met Virgil?” 

Logan crossed his arms and raised a single eyebrow whereas Damien just glared. This was not going well. 

“I’m not sure I’ve had the…pleasure.” Logan started, “Logan Sanders. Senior. I’m a friend of the person who you seemed to be…attached to prior to our arrival.” Virgil raised his eyebrows. Who was this guy?

“I’m Damien De Santos.” Damien mumbled, his eyes narrowed as he scrutinised Virgil’s appearance. “Roman’s best friend since diapers.”

Roman smiled. In all honesty Logan’s and Damien’s protectiveness was kind of adorable, if completely unwarranted.

“Guys, this is-” 

“I can introduce myself, Pri-Roman.” Virgil cut in, grabbing Roman’s hand and squeezing it gently. “I’m Virgil. Senior. My brother and I transferred from-”

“Cypress Creek in Orlando. We’ve heard.” Damien butt in, adjusting his hat. They fell into silence after that, filled with unsaid words and a negative emotion Roman definitely didn’t like. 

“Right, well…I think that’s my cue.” Virgil mumbled, turning to Roman and smiling gently. “I’ll see you later.” With a peck on the cheek, Virgil turned and began walking away, letting go of Roman’s hand. Roman watched Virgil walk away, a pout on his face. 

He turned back around to face his friends and glared at them.

“What the hell was that?!” Roman exclaimed, drawing the attention of a few students around them. “You two were being so unnecessarily rude to Virgil!” Logan scoffed.

“Roman, we just want what’s best for you and what is best for you is…” Logan looked down as he searched for the right words. “Not him.” Okay, so maybe Logan didn’t try  _that_ hard to be non-offensive. Roman scoffed, pressing a hand to his chest (ever the dramatic). 

“How…How could you say that?!” Roman cried, gripping the strap on his messenger bag. “You guys know nothing about Virgil other than the senseless and untrue gossip that you’ve heard around the school. It is completely unfair for you to judge him based on…rumours!” 

Damien sighed. 

“Oh, yeah, because us wanting you  _not_ to date someone who punches people in the face during class for  _no reason_  is totally unreasonable! Sorry, Ro.” Damien remarked sarcastically. Roman sputtered.

“Th-that was not for no reason! He was protecting a friend, that is allowed!” Roman felt himself getting angrier by the second. “¡Anda ya! As if you’re the perfect  _picture_ of calmness, Dami.” 

Damien rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to reply but the bell cut him off. It was time for homeroom. The three boys stood at Roman’s locker, no one sure what to say next. It was tense to say the least. 

“I…I have to get to class.” Roman mumbled, his eyes falling to the floor as he turned on his heel and walked to his classroom. The skip in his step that he’d began the day with had disintegrated into a drag. 

This day wasn’t going exactly as he’d expected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The aftermath!! I love Logan and Deceit but I felt like for story purposes, I had to set up the storyline this way! They’re not intentionally being bad friends, they just want what’s best for Roman! It’ll all work itself out, I promise!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed that!!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are always appreciated! Follow me on my Tumblr @romanticsanders if you guys want! <3
> 
> \- Brit xx


	6. Chapter 6

Virgil could not have left that conversation sooner. He could tell that Logan and Damien hated him and if he was being honest? It wasn’t something he could handle. He could feel a familiar tightness crawling up his chest as he quickly walked to homeroom. 

When he walked into Mr. Picani’s classroom, he gave his homeroom teacher a two fingered salute before walking to the back of the room where Patton and Remy were already sat. 

“...and we’re in the same chemistry class! He’s just  _so_ cute! And, oh my gosh, the other day I was studying in the library and he asked if- Oh, morning, Virge!” Patton said, ending his story in order to greet Virgil as he took his seat by the window. 

Patton took in the tense shoulders and the furrowed brow. He’d seen this a lot, especially this summer. Remy had too over the years. 

“What happened?” Remy asked, grabbing his drink and swishing the ice cubes around. “You look a lot different from when we drove to school this morning.”

That morning, Virgil had been the happiest he’d been in  _months_. Because of Roman. His boyfriend. His boyfriend who’s friends hated him.  _Right_.

“...I’m fine.” Virgil mumbled, avoiding eye contact with Remy and Patton. “Just...something happened with Roman this morning. Don’t wanna talk about it.”

Patton and Remy looked at each other, concerned. Virgil had been so excited to tell them about what had happened at the park yesterday. What could’ve happened between then and now?

“Did he say something?” Patton asked. He could already feel his protective nature flaring up in his chest. 

“No! Roman’s...he’s great. It wasn’t him who said something.” Virgil mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck and tapping on the desk. “It was...It’s his friends. They don’t like me.” 

“Logan and Damien?” Patton asked, frowning. Patton had gone to school with them  _and_ Roman for basically his whole life and he’d never known them to be hateful people.

“...why?” Remy asked, raising an eyebrow. “They barely know you. It’s not like you’ve been quick to socialize with anyone but us and Roman.” 

Virgil looked at Remy incredulously, raising an eyebrow. 

Ever since they were kids, Virgil hadn’t been quick to make friends. He was always the quiet one, the one kids avoided. His classmates had said he looked mean because he didn’t smile too much.  _If his mom hadn’t made him get those stupid braces..._ Virgil found that other kids his age tended to prefer his twin brother over him.

However, his classmates never knew about Virgil’s severe social anxiety. They never bothered to find out that Virgil didn’t smile because he’d  _hated_  his smile. Sooner or later, Virgil decided it was better that he didn’t have that many friends. The more you have, the more you have to lose, right? At a certain point, making friends seemed...pointless. 

And then Patton had come along. They moved next door to the O’Connor’s at the beginning of the summer and Patton had been eager to meet them. Their first night in the new house had been interrupted by an overly-enthusiastic teenaged boy in a light blue button-up shirt holding a box of cookies outside their front door. 

Other than Remy, Patton had been the first person Virgil had really opened himself up to. He had a friend now. One that he wasn’t related to. Virgil thought things were turning around...

And then he started school with Remy and the cycle began again. Except this time, he wasn’t being avoided for being weird or antisocial. He was being avoided because people were scared of him. He’d heard the rumours going around too. It was crazy how people took a piece of information and so badly warped it to fit a certain narrative. 

“Roman’s friends decided that they didn’t like me because...because of some rumours they heard? I guess?” Virgil murmured, eyebrows furrowed. The clenching feeling in his chest only got worse by saying it out loud. “Which is...ridiculous! I-I didn’t do half the things that these people are saying and all of a sudden I’m being judged for it?” 

Patton placed a comforting hand on Virgil’s shoulder and squeezed gently. He fought the urge to stand up and hunt down Damien and Logan for making Virgil feel like this.

“I’m sorry, Virgil.” He said quietly, “But at least you still have us! And Roman, right?” Virgil smiled slightly at the thought of Roman but that smile was quickly diminished.

“I-I don’t know...what if he breaks up with me?” Virgil whispered, blinking rapidly. He was  _not_ going to cry. “What if he decides his friends are right? That I’m dangerous and a  _player?_ This is the first relationship I’ve ever had and I’ve already screwed it up.”

“You haven’t screwed up anything.” Remy remarked, taking a sip of coffee. “Just ‘cause some assholes won’t bother to get to know the real you? That’s bullshit. And if Roman were smart, he would be able to see past their judgement.” 

Virgil hummed in response, not  _really_ believing anything Remy was saying. This was all getting too complicated.

* * *

 

“Good morning, Patton.” Patton looked up from where he was doodling in his notebook and saw Logan taking his seat next to him. Patton tried not to smile brightly in response.  _It just wasn’t fair that he was so cute._

“Mhm.” Patton hummed in response, looking back down at his notebook. Logan furrowed his eyebrows.

“Patton?” No response. “Patton, are you angry with me?”

“Well, you’re not exactly my favourite person at the moment!” Patton replied, looking at Logan who looked shocked to say the least. “Sorry for being rude but...it’s true.”

 _Great, now two people are mad at me._  Logan thought.

“Why? Have I done something wrong?” Logan asked, wracking his brain. Logan thought back to the previous day when he’d bumped into Patton at the library. They’d studied together and then got coffee. Logan didn’t think that interaction had gone particularly badly.

Patton sighed.

“Well...yes! You know, for someone who thinks so logically, you are  _very_  quick to believe rumours that have no factual backing or evidence.” Patton retorted, his heart beating faster and faster. This tended to happen when he got angry. “What gives you the right to-”

“Morning, everyone! I hope everyone is ready to learn about covalent bonds!” Patton was cut off when Mrs. Torres walked into the classroom, her same bright smile on her face.

Thus, their conversation ended. Patton spent the rest of the lesson dodging Logan’s attempts at communicating, still simmering with anger. Logan wasn’t someone who usually got caught up on what others thought about him but...this felt different for some reason. It felt more personal. Logan didn’t like the growing ache in his chest whenever Patton would ignore one of his subtle notes. 

When the bell rang signalling the end of class, Patton began silently packing away his things. 

“Patton, can you at least tell me what’s wrong?” Logan asked, his arms crossed defensively. 

Patton glared at him.

“For someone so smart, you sure can’t put two and two together.” Patton remarked, shoving his last notebook into his bag before walking out of the classroom, Logan following behind him like a loyal puppy. “Didn’t you hear any of what I said before class? Before Ms. Torres came? What gives you the right to judge my friend on  _stupid_ rumours that aren’t even true?” 

Oh, so that’s what this was about. Logan felt the guilt in his chest from that morning grow even deeper. 

“I-I’m sorry Patton, I’m just trying to look out for my friend!” Logan added, quickening his pace so that he could stand in front of Patton. “I...You would’ve done the same for Virgil, I’m sure!” 

“Cut down somebody else because they don’t fit the type of person I’d hang out with? Not listen to anything my friend has to say about them? You know what? You and I may not be as alike as you think.” Patton spat, his knuckles white from where he was gripping his backpack straps. It was rare that anyone saw Patton this upset (Usually this only happened if anyone made fun of his family) and Logan felt horrible for it.

Patton pushed past Logan and stormed off, leaving Logan alone in the hallway. 

Maybe he’d made a mistake.

* * *

 

Study hall. Damien’s favourite time of the day. Not  _just_ because he had the opportunity to do nothing but focus on his writing for 60 minutes. It  _might_  also be because of who he got to see during those minutes.

Remington Alexander. 

The thought of the other boy made Damien’s heart begin to race. It wasn’t a feeling that Damien was used to but he didn’t  _hate_ it. There was just something about Remy that Damien admired. Maybe it was how he seemed so cool and carefree all the time. 

Damien seemed to always be on edge. With the way things were at home, he kind of had to be. He yearned to be like Remy...sometimes he even kind of wished he could be  _with_  Remy. But that was a situation for another day. 

Damien walked into the library and saw Remy sitting at their usual spot on the couches near the, horribly maintained, fish tank. Damien steeled his nerves and plastered a cool smirk onto his face before sauntering up to Remy.

“Hey.” Damien said, taking a seat.

Remy barely acknowledged him. That was...odd. 

“Um...” Damien could feel himself start to sweat. “You sure are talkative today.” 

Remy looked up from his phone and raised a single eyebrow, lips pursed.

“Mm...I don’t make it a habit to talk to people who judge others before getting to know them first.” Remy said casually, taking his glasses off and giving them a quick wipe with his t-shirt. “And from what I’ve heard, you seem to do  _plenty_ of that.”

Damien’s eyes widened and he floundered, unsure of what to say.

“I-I don’t...I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Remy scoffed.

“Let me give you a  _hint_ then. What’s my surname?”

“...Alexander?” 

“Do you know anyone else in the school who maybe...shares my surname?” 

Damien blanched. Virgil.  _Of course this was about Virgil._

“I-I don’t know what you’re talking about, Remy, I barely know the guy! I’ve only talked to him like once.”

“Oh save me the  _lies,_ De Santos.” Remy said, allowing himself to lose his cool just this once. This was his brother they were talking about. “You know what sucks? Before you almost gave my brother an anxiety attack with your and your  _friend’s_  little stunt this morning, I actually thought I liked you. Guess I was wrong.” 

And with that, Remy was gone. Damien was left alone in the library with no one but Mr. Ermine and the sad little fish in the fish tank to keep him company.

...He felt like  _trash._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay I’m not so sure how I feel about this chapter, not gonna lie. I feel like maybe Damien is a little OOC but I have no idea how to write him since we know so little about him. But I hope you guys liked this chapter anyways!!!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed that!!! If you want, you can follow me and message me questions or anything you want about this fic! I'm always open to asks <3 my url is @romanticsanders!
> 
> Kudos and comments are always appreciated!! The response to this story from you guys has been stellar so far and i am forever grateful! <3
> 
> \- Brit xx


	7. Chapter 7

Roman was  _not_ having a good day. Quite frankly, he felt betrayed. Left behind. And by his  _best friends_. The people he’d had the closest of bonds with since he was a kid! His brain was thrumming with anger but his heart  _ached._  He hated fighting with Logan and Damien. They hadn’t properly fought since 7th grade when they couldn’t agree on which High School Musical movie was the best.

(Roman was a staunch believer in the third movie, Damien liked the second, and Logan liked the first the most.) 

That fight had lasted all of 2 hours with each of them apologising and just agreeing to have a High School Musical marathon.

But this was different.

This fight wasn’t about Zac Efron in a basketball jersey singing about theatre and sports. This fight was so much more than that. 

Roman had a boyfriend now! His first boyfriend  _ever_. Weren’t they supposed to be happy for him? Isn’t that what friends did? But instead he was met with cold looks and sneer comments and jabs. It very well broke his heart. 

“Woah, woah, slow down.” 

Roman looked up from where he was staring at the cold linoleum floor. He hadn’t noticed how distracted he was whilst walking until he bumped into someone solid. He breathed a soft sigh of relief when he saw Virgil standing in front of him. 

“Oh, it’s just you.” Roman said quietly, feeling the tension ease out of his shoulders. Virgil smiled for the first time since that morning.

“What do you mean ‘just’ me? You wound me, Princey.” Virgil said softly, though his voice held no real malice or hurt. Roman smiled and let out a quiet chuckle.

“You know that’s not what I meant.” He retaliated quietly. The two of them stood there for a moment, unsure of how to proceed. Something felt different. 

 _Fuck it_. Roman thought. He wrapped his arms around Virgil’s shoulders and sighed, pulling him in for a tight hug. He buried his face into Virgil’s neck and sighed. Virgil wrapped his arms around Roman’s waist in return and closed his eyes, relieved. 

So, nothing had really changed between them.

“I’m so sorry.” Roman said quietly, “Logan and Damien had no right to be so rude to you this morning. I don’t know what they were thinking!”

 _I do._  

“D-Don’t worry about it, Ro, it’s fine.” Virgil replied, pulling away from the hug but keeping his arms firmly in place on Roman’s sides. Roman smiled.

“That’s new.”  

“What?” 

“You’ve never called me Ro before.” Roman said with a cheeky smile. “I like it. Now I have to think of a cutesy nickname for you. What about…honeybun?” 

Virgil wrinkled his nose and laughed, shaking his head. 

“I may just have to break up with you.” 

At that, they both started laughing, Roman coming up with more absurd nicknames for Virgil. Their peace was interrupted when Roman looked just behind Virgil’s shoulder and saw Logan and Damien, walking together and talking quietly. Roman’s smile faded and he sighed, the ache in his heart growing. 

“You miss them.” Virgil said quietly, his stomach twisting uncomfortably. Roman looked away from them and looked back at Virgil.

“I-I do…I mean they’re my best friends.” Roman admitted, biting his lip. “But they treated you unfairly. They didn’t act the way friends should act. I just…I want to have you  _and_ them. I just don’t know how that can happen.” 

Virgil smiled sadly and reached over to grab one of Roman’s hands, squeezing it gently. 

“I…I think I know a way.”

* * *

“Do you think we made the right decision?” Damien asked, picking at his sandwich. His mom had put pickles in it  _again._ Damien hated pickles. 

Logan frowned as he looked over at Patton’s lunch table. It seemed as though Patton was making a conscious effort to look anywhere  _but_ at their table. 

“Yes. We did. We’re just…trying to protect Roman.” Logan said, but at this point he wasn’t so sure. Damien nodded, biting his lip. 

“Yeah, I guess.” Damien mumbled, looking around the cafeteria. “Where is he anyway?”

“I’m right here.” 

Damien and Logan looked up and saw Roman standing at their table holding a lunch tray, his mouth set in a deep frown. Damien and Logan looked at one another before looking back at Roman.

“So? Can I sit?” He asked. Damien moved his backpack from the bench to the floor and gestured for Roman to sit down. Roman put his tray down and slumped into the seat, looking down at the table.

“Um…hello, Roman.” Logan said slowly, his eyebrows raised in surprise. He was sure Roman would’ve been mad at them for at least a few days. “How…how was class?”

Roman crossed his arms on top of the table and rested his forehead on top of his forearms, shaking his head.

“Don’t. Just…don’t.” He said quietly. He sat there for a few minutes, hiding his face from Logan and Damien as they watched on in worry. After a minute had passed he finally looked up, his eyes slightly red. “He broke up with me.”

* * *

“…You did what now?”

Virgil rolled his eyes as he pulled out his lunch from his backpack. 

“We broke up.” Virgil said, not looking up from his sandwich. Patton placed a hand on Virgil’s wrist.

“I’m so sorry, Virgil.” He said quietly, eyebrows knitted with concern. “I-I know you really liked him.”

Virgil merely shrugged.

“We were only going out for like…a day. It’s what’s best. Roman’s been friends with those guys for way longer than he’s known me so…it’s fine.” Virgil finally looked up and mustered up a small smile. “I’m fine, guys. Promise.” 

Remy narrowed his eyes but didn’t say anything. He had a feeling something was up but…he couldn’t put his finger on it. 

“That is bullshit.” He said, crossing his arms. Virgil whipped his head up to look at Remy. “You can’t let those assholes control your life! You were  _happy_  with Roman. I don’t care that you guys were only together for like a day. You really, really like him.”

Virgil frowned. 

“Remy, just drop it! I don’t wanna talk about it anymore. Can I just eat my lunch in peace? Please?” Virgil exclaimed, shrinking slightly as he took a small bite of his sandwich. 

Remy sighed but didn’t say anything else, placing a supportive hand on his brother’s shoulder and squeezing gently.

“I’m sorry. I just…care about you.” Remy mumbled softly, “If this is what you think is best, then…I’m here for you.” Patton nodded.

“Me too.” 

Virgil smiled despite himself. He really did have some top notch friends.

* * *

“Y-you guys broke up?!” Damien exclaimed, eyes wide. Maybe…maybe it wasn’t all their fault. Maybe Virgil really  _was_ the guy Damien and Logan thought he was. “W-why?”

Roman sniffed softly and shook his head, stabbing his salad leaves half-heartedly. 

“I…I mean if you guys really don’t like him  _that much_  then…I-I trust your guys’ judgement. I told him that I couldn’t choose between you and he broke up with me.” Roman said quietly, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “So…I guess you guys were right all along.”

Logan bit his lip. He wasn’t the best at…comforting people. 

“Um…I-I’m sorry, Roman. You must be very upset.” Logan said. He cringed at how robotic he sounded but…he genuinely did care. He hated seeing Roman like this. “But…um…maybe he’ll come to his senses? Or you’ll find someone better! Someone different.” 

Roman shrugged and began eating his lunch. Damien and Logan didn’t know what else to say. 

* * *

After school that day, Roman got home and closed the door to his bedroom, hanging his backpack on one of his bedposts and sitting on his bed. 

He grabbed his phone and saw a new text. 

**V <3 to Me, 3:29pm:**

_do u think they bought it_

**Me to V <3, 3:29pm:**

_They definitely did! I’m a very good actor._

**V <3 to Me, 3:29pm:**

_i know u are._

**V <3 to Me, 3:31pm:**

_< 3 :)_

**Me to V <3, 3:31pm:**

_!!!! <3 <3 <3 _

Roman grinned and clutched his phone to his chest, his cheeks almost aching from smiling so much. 

Guess you really can have your cake and eat it too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the plot thickens!! C'mon guys I'd never actually break them up. Or would I? 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are always much appreciated <3 and if y'all wanna follow me on Tumblr, the chapters are uploaded there first and you can catch some more of my writing on there! @romanticsanders
> 
> \- Brit xx


	8. Chapter 8

Virgil would  _never_  get tired of hearing Roman sing. 

He was currently in Roman’s room, lying stomach-down on his bed watching his boyfriend rehearse for their upcoming homecoming dance. It was a few weeks after the whole…friends debacle. The principal had asked members of the musical theatre society to sing in lieu of hiring an  _actual_ band and of course they’d said yes.

“ _…or you could just shut up._

_Shut up and kiss me, shut up._

_Shut up and kiss me._

_You can say you won’t. You can tell me no,_

_And you can let me go. Or maybe if you don’t then just shut up,_

_Shut up and kiss me.”_

Virgil grinned as he watched Roman spin and dance around his room, singing along to the Marianas Trench song playing from his speakers. There was just something about the way Roman came alive while he performed that Virgil couldn’t get enough of. The way he lit up the room with his spirit and tenacity. It made Virgil never want to look away.

Roman ended the song with a flourish and his eyes immediately found his boyfriend’s, looking for approval. Virgil smiled and sat up, tugging on Roman’s hand and pulling him close.

“Well, if you insist.” Virgil mumbled before pulling Roman in for a chaste kiss. Roman sighed into it but hummed, pushing Virgil away, much to his chagrin.

“Virge, wait, I need you to tell me what you thought of my performance!” Roman replied, a giggle escaping his throat when he saw the pout on his boyfriends face. “Did you like it? Was it too much? What about the song?” 

Virgil sighed but smiled anyway, pressing a light kiss to Roman’s knuckles.

“You sang beautifully. You  _are_  beautiful.” Virgil said, pulling Roman so they were sitting on the bed next to each other. Roman grinned and squeezed Virgil’s hand.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” Roman said, grinning. Virgil rolled his eyes and shoved his boyfriend gently. In return, Roman hit him with one of his cushions before flopping back onto the bed and sighing. “Thank you, though. I appreciate you coming over and helping me with my song.” 

Virgil smiled and brushed a strand of hair from Roman’s forehead. 

“Anytime, Princey.” 

Roman sat up and bit his lip, his eyes lowering to look at Virgil’s lips. He hummed and raised a hand to cup Virgil’s cheek before pulling him in for a soft kiss, his other hand running itself through Virgil’s hair. 

Virgil sighed into the feeling and pulled Roman closer, playing with the hairs on the nape of Roman’s neck as they kissed. There wasn’t anything Virgil didn’t love about kissing Roman. Well…maybe there was  _one_ thing but…them not being able to kiss in public wasn’t an issue that could be easily alleviated right now so…Virgil would take what he could get. 

As the kiss grew in intensity, Roman felt heat rising up the back of his neck and he hummed, shrugging off his jacket. Just as he threw his jacket onto the floor, he heard the doorbell ring. 

Startled by the nose, Roman quickly pulled away from Virgil, somehow managing to slide  _off_  the bed and onto the floor, whining when the hardwood hit his butt. 

Roman and Virgil looked at each other, eyes wide. They hadn’t been expecting anybody.  _Oh, God._

Roman looked out the window through the blinds and saw Logan and Damien standing on his front porch, backpacks and sleepover gear in tow.  _Shit._

Roman had forgotten. It was the last Friday of the month. 

On thee last Friday of every month, Logan, Damien, and Roman had made it a tradition to have a sleepover. They usually watched movies and just hung out on their respective computers. There was never much talking but…you didn’t always need to talk to just enjoy someone else’s company. 

Roman looked at Virgil with wide, panicked eyes. Virgil looked back, just as worried.

“Shit! They can’t see you, um…” Roman looked around his room and locked eyes with his closet door. He looked back at Virgil apologetically. Virgil somehow knew what Roman was about to say and sighed heavily. 

“This is awfully ironic.” Virgil mumbled, standing up and grabbing his things. He walked to the closet and opened the door, stepping into Roman’s large and pristine walk-in. 

“I’m sorry! I…I’ll distract them and you can find a way to sneak out. It won’t be for any longer than a couple minutes, I promise you.” Roman said, guilt colouring his voice. He couldn’t believe he’d forgotten! He gave Virgil a quick, chaste peck on the lips before closing the cupboard door and running down the stairs to greet Damien and Logan. 

Virgil sighed but smiled anyway. Although he was…anxious about this entire situation, there was something almost laughable about this. It all seemed so cliche, like they were  _living_ in a high school romantic comedy. 

Virgil took a seat on the floor and pulled out his phone, distracting himself on Tumblr. 

* * *

Roman ran down the stairs and opened the door, fixing a bright smile onto his face. 

“You guys are early!” He said brightly, letting Damien and Logan in and shutting the door. Logan raised his eyebrows and checked his watch.

“No, we aren’t. It’s 5:00pm on the dot. Exactly when you said we should come over. Remember?” Logan asked, looking away from his watch and turning to Roman. He narrowed his eyes when he took in his best friend’s flushed cheeks and slightly mussed hair. “…did we interrupt something? Do you have somebody over?” 

Roman’s eyes widened. 

“N-No! Of course not, why would you even…no! I was just working out, that’s all.” Roman said quickly, running his hands through his hair and looking down at his clothes. He was still wearing the jeans and button-up he’d worn to school that day. “But then I…changed back into my day clothes. I can’t be seen going around in my gym gear, especially when I have guests.”

“…okay.” Logan said slowly, hugging his pillow to his chest. Something about Roman seemed off but…he decided not to dwell on it. He had other matters to take care of anyway. 

Damien was already in the kitchen helping himself to Roman’s snacks. 

“Ro! Where does your mom keep the  _Tin Larín’s?”_ Damien called, his head in one of Roman’s kitchen cupboards. Roman rolled his eyes.

“Look with your eyes,  _idiota_.  _Está detrás del café_.” Roman instructed, walking over and pulling a box of chocolate bars out from behind his father’s tin of instant coffee. Damien grinned and grabbed the box, ripping open a chocolate bar and eating it. 

“Hm. Now that Damien has been fed, shall we head up to your room?” Logan suggested, smiling. “Damien and I have a surprise for you.” 

Roman bit his lip and looked at the stairs hesitantly. 

“Um…m-my brother and sister are home so…maybe we should stay downstairs for a bit.” 

“So? We’ve met Ryan and Reagan hundreds of times, what makes  _now_ so different?” Damien asked through a mouthful of chocolate and peanut butter. Roman grimaced.

“That’s disgusting, Dami, swallow before you talk.” Roman remarked, watching as Damien rolled his eyes. “And we…had a fight. Reagan and Ryan aren’t in the best mood right now.” 

Damien and Logan looked at each other before looking at Roman. 

“Are you hiding something from us?” Logan asked, his head tilted just a smidge to achieve an heir of suspiciousness. “Because you can tell us anything, Ro.”

 _Obviously I can’t._ That was what Roman  _wanted_ to say. But instead all he said was…

“No! Of course not, let’s…let’s go upstairs.” Roman said, smiling. As Roman, Damien, and Logan began walking up the stairs, Roman felt a sinking feeling in his chest. 

This was gonna be a long night.

* * *

Virgil was pre-occupied scrolling through Instagram when he heard the door to Roman’s bedroom open and a few new voices enter.  _Shit_. 

Virgil breathed in and out slowly, trying his best not to make any noise. He was afraid that Damien and Logan would be able to hear his heartbeat. 

“…you’ve been…weird lately…Virgil?”  _What the hell?_ Were they talking about him? 

Virgil crawled closer to the door, trying to look through the diagonal wooden slats that made up Roman’s closet door. All he could see where three pairs of feet. Although he couldn’t see, from his position next to the door, at least Virgil could hear a little better.

“Why are you bringing up Virgil? We broke up, remember?” 

“Sorry, it’s just…you haven’t been acting like yourself.” Damien. That voice was definitely Damien. 

Roman sighed. Virgil heard the sound of him sitting on something soft - so…his bed, probably. He wanted to burst out of the closet and scoop his boyfriend up into a hug. Obviously though, he couldn’t.

“Well, I guess I’m still mourning the loss of what could’ve been a  _wonderful_  relationship.” Virgil smiled. Their relationship thus far really had been every type of wonderful. 

There was silence for a while. Virgil heard Logan and Damien shuffle about. Maybe they were all on the bed now? Virgil wished he could see. 

“Well, maybe you won’t have to mourn anymore.” Damien said tentatively. Virgil furrowed his eyebrows. Were they…maybe they were ready to start accepting their relationship. Virgil bit his thumbnail and listened on with rapt attention.

“What do you mean?” Virgil could hear the slight hopefulness in his tone and he grinned. 

“We mean that Damien and I…” Logan started and stopped. Virgil was bouncing in place. He hated the suspense. 

“We set you up on a date!” They both exclaimed. 

…Excuse me,  _what_?

“What?!”

Virgil’s sentiments exactly, Roman.

* * *

“A-A date?! Why?! I’m perfectly happy being…s-single!” Roman exclaimed, standing up and pacing to the other side of the room before whipping around and looking just  _behind_ Damien and Logan at his closet door. He almost couldn’t say the ‘s’ word. He quickly turned his attention back onto his friends.

“You’ve been so upset lately because of… _Virgil._ We thought you might feel better if you had someone to take your mind off of him.” Logan answered, shrugging. “Carlos Ramirez is nice and moderately attractive. He enjoys the same things that you enjoy  _and_ we know he already likes you since he did ask you out in our sophomore year.” 

Roman scowled.

“If you like him so much why don’t  _you_ date him?” Roman mumbled, crossing his arms petulantly. Logan flushed but rolled his eyes. 

“Roman, we just want you to be happy. We know that our initial reaction to you and Virgil was…not ideal. But I think you and Carlos could be a good match.” Damien said, “You don’t have to go out with him if you really don’t want to but…he’s a nice guy and he likes you.”

“You know who else is a nice guy who likes me? Virgil!” My boyfriend! Roman so badly wanted to declare the truth but he couldn’t.  _Not yet._ Damien and Logan at least looked a little bit guilty at that. Roman counted that as a win. “Look, I appreciate…what you both are trying to do for me. But I don’t need it. What I need is a sleepover with my best friends where we  _don’t_ talk about Virgil or Carlos and just…be us. Okay?” 

“…okay.” 

“Alright.” 

Roman sighed softly and nodded. 

“Okay, good.” 

The three of them began setting up their things (DVD’s, laptops, pillows, etc.) when Roman felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He pulled it out and turned his back on Damien and Logan to check it.

**V <3 to Me, 5:24pm:**

_carlos ramirez huh? capt of the swim team?_

**V <3 to Me, 5:24pm:**

_he’s pretty hot stuff. sure u don’t wanna go out with him instead?_

Roman’s eyes flickered towards the closet where he knew Virgil was hiding

**Me to V <3: 5:24pm:**

_Hmm…despite the fact that he does look pretty dreamy in his school-issued swim shorts, I’d never leave you for him, Sunshine. No need to worry._

**V <3 to Me, 5:24pm: **

_just making sure_

**V <3 to Me, 5:25pm:**

_i wasn’t jealous or anything lmao_

**Me to V <3, 5:25pm:**

_sure ;)_

“Who’re you texting?” Roman looked up from his phone when he heard Damien ask him a question and he shook his head. 

“Just…my mom. She wants to know what we want for dinner.”

“Ohh, can she make her seafood paella?” Damien asked, flopping onto his stomach. “I have  _dreams_ about that shit, man.” 

Roman rolled his eyes but texted his mother anyway. He looked back at his closet and bit his lip, wondering what he should do about Virgil in the closet. 

“Hey, guys, why don’t we go out for a bit? We can get coffees and then come back and start our marathon. I suddenly have the biggest craving for a croissant from O’Connors.” 

At the mention of Patton’s families bakery, Logan perked up. Roman smirked.  _Bingo._

“Roman, it’s 5pm, much too late for us to be ingesting caffeine.” Logan said, straightening his shirt and clearing his throat. “However, I would not mind going to Pat- um…the O’Connor’s bakery for a confectionary treat.” Damien nodded in agreement. Roman relaxed his shoulders and grinned, grabbing his wallet and keys. 

“Great, I’ll drive!” 

He opened the door for Damien and Logan and watched as they walked down the hall towards the stairs. 

“You guys wait for me downstairs! I just have to…pee!” Roman cried, watching as they walked down the stairs and disappeared from view. He closed the door to his bedroom and walked over to the closet where Virgil was still sat on the floor. 

“Virgil! My Sunshine, I’m  _so_ sorry about that.” He pulled Virgil up with one strong tug and pulled him in for a tight hug. Virgil smiled and returned the hug, pressing a kiss to Roman’s shoulder gently.

“That wasn’t a day at the spa but…I survived. I’m okay.” Virgil said quietly, “So…what’s the plan of action here?” 

“Well, we’re headed to O’Connors for some snacks. We should be gone in about 15 minutes and then you can make your stealthy escape. I’ll text you when the coast is clear, okay?” 

Virgil smiled though his chest was turning with anxiety. 

“You make this sound like some sort of secret mission.” Roman grinned.

“What’s the point of having a secret relationship if you can’t fantasize a little?” Roman replied, pressing a gentle kiss to Virgil’s lips. “I have to go but…thank you for today. I lo…um…I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Before Virgil could say anything else, Roman was gone, out the door. Had he been about to say what Virgil  _thought_  he’d been about to say? 

Virgil felt a blush creep up high on his cheeks and he grinned uncontrollably, clutching his phone in one hand and his other hand coming up to cover his mouth. 

 _Wow,_  he was so far gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The song Roman sings is Shut Up and Kiss Me by Marianas Trench! Probably a…better name for this fic than what I named it but…it’s too late now. ALSO sorry again if Damien is a little bit,,out of character. I’m not too used to writing him in a human context yet but I hope it wasn’t horrible to read!
> 
> And again thank you so much for the awesome response I've gotten so far!! Every comment truly means the world to me <3 
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated! And if y'all wanna follow me on tumblr i'm @romanticsanders!
> 
> \- Brit xx


	9. Chapter 9

_ Normally  _ Logan would be preoccupied wondering about exactly why his best friend was acting so strangely. Normally he’d be interrogating him, coming up with ideas, brainstorming. That’s what he normally would be doing. 

However,  _ normally _ he wasn’t in the position where the boy he  _ kind of had feelings for  _ was standing no more than 6 feet away from him in a flour-stained apron looking cuter than ever. 

So, yes, perhaps on a normal day Logan would be more perceptive and just a tad more focused. But today was no normal day. 

Ever since their fight in chemistry class, Logan had kind of been avoiding Patton. Mostly because he couldn’t take the guilt. It made him feel uncomfortable and tight right in his chest area and that was certainly something Logan did  _ not  _ like feeling. 

But then...Roman and Virgil broke up. And Patton seemed to be back to his normal happy-go-lucky self. They hadn’t really talked about it. But now they didn’t talk about Roman or Virgil at all, instead sticking to topics such as chemistry and baked goods and occasionally coffee. 

But the pessimist in Logan just  _ knew  _ the other shoe was going to drop soon. He just hoped he’d be able to catch it before the proverbial shit hit the fan. 

Roman, Damien, and Logan walked into O’Connor’s and all three of them instantly took a deep breath in. That was one of the best parts about going to O’Connors - the smell of freshly baked treats and coffee lingering in the air. The homey atmosphere was nice too. 

The walls were painted a pretty pastel green with light brown wooden floors. Special filament lightbulbs hung a few feet above the tables on long black wires, casting a golden glow over each table. The cafe had an abundance of windows which allowed natural light in (that was one of Roman’s favourite features - perfect selfie lighting!). Suffice to say, O’Connor’s was a popular hang out. 

The three boys walked over to a corner table by a large window and sat down, Roman pulling out his phone to text Virgil. He tilted his phone towards him slightly, trying to hide his screen. 

“Who are you texting?” Logan asked, though his eyes weren’t on Roman at all - they were fixed on the dashing barista currently behind the pastry case, talking to an older woman with white hair wearing the same apron. 

“Um...my...sister. It’s embarrassing, she’s sick and needs me to get some stuff from her from the pharmacy.” Roman replied quickly, his eyes glued to his phone. He hoped that sounded convincing enough but Damien and Logan weren’t asking any residual questions so...he called that a success.

**Me to V <3, 5:34pm:**

_ We’re at Patton’s cafe!! The coast is clear so you can head out now <3 I’m sorry our date got interrupted :(  _

**V <3 to Me, 5:34pm:**

_ its ok lol  _

**V <3 to Me, 5:34pm:**

_ you can make it up to me some other time ;) _

Roman blushed and tried to hide the smile that so desperately wanted to creep onto his face. He sent back a heart emoji and stuffed his phone into his pocket. 

“Well, I’m going to go order.” Roman said, taking his jacket off and getting up. Logan and Damien nodded and began a conversation about some nerdy TV show that Roman refused to watch. Roman was  _ smart  _ but he refused to be a geek. 

He walked up to the counter and smiled kindly at Patton. He’d always liked Patton, ever since elementary school when they’d played house together that one time. Patton had let him be the mommy. 

“Hello there, Patton!” He said cheerfully, pulling his wallet out of his pocket. “How goes it?” 

Patton looked up from the cash register and gave Roman a tentative smile. 

“Roman! Hi!” Patton said, drumming his fingers on the counter. “I’m great. Just trying to make some money so I can buy some new clothes for homecoming.” 

Roman nodded and peered into the pastry case. They fell into a silence whilst Roman tried to choose which pastry to order. Patton nibbled on his lip as he watched him, wondering...

“Hey, Roman?” 

Roman looked up.

“Yes?” Patton looked nervous. That made Roman feel uneasy. 

“Listen, I...I heard about you and Virgil.” Patton said quietly, his voice turning slightly...stern? “I...He was really pretty sad about your break up.” 

Roman sighed and frowned, looking back at Logan and Damien before turning back to Patton.

“I mean...it wasn’t exactly easy for me either, Pat.” Roman said quietly, fiddling with the coin zipper on his wallet. “Logan and Damien were...and he...it’s a very complicated situation.”

Patton frowned, unsatisfied. 

“Do you really think it’s healthy to let what your friends think dictate your life though?” 

Well. 

“Um...excuse me?” Roman asked, furrowing his eyebrows. “What do you mean? Damien and Logan are my best friends, they...I-I trust their judgement.” 

“You trust their judgement over your own?” Patton asked, biting his lip. “I’m just saying, Roman, you...you must have wanted to date him for some reason, right? You must’ve seen something in him that Logan and Damien couldn’t. So...why would you give that up just because your friends don’t seem to agree?” 

Roman frowned and looked away from Patton, eyeing the brightly decorated sugar cookies on display. 

“Um...”

“I don’t mean to butt into the whole situation but...I think you two could make each other really happy.” Patton said, reaching into the cupboard and pulling out a cookie decorated to look like a little crown. “Just think about it? Or talk to him at least.” 

Roman smiled gently. Patton was smarter than he let on. 

“I’ll think about it, Patton.” Roman said softly, his eyes finally lifting to look into Patton’s bright baby blues. He realised suddenly why Logan liked him so much.

_ If I wasn’t completely in love with- _

Wait.

In love?

“I’m assuming you want your usual iced black coffee?” Patton’s voice interrupted his thoughts and he refocused his attention on him. “And don’t worry about the cookie. It’s on the house.”

Roman nodded and thanked Patton quietly, taking the cookie that Patton had offered him and giving Patton his card to pay. He felt a smile spring to his lips at his newfound realisation. 

He, Roman Kingsley, was in  _ love  _ with Virgil Alexander.

* * *

 

The time between getting the ‘OK’ text from Roman and  _ actually  _ trying to sneak out of his house were quite possibly the most anxiety inducing moments of Virgil’s young life. 

He knew Reagan, Roman’s sister, was home. But she was probably asleep or napping from what Roman had told him about her. He tried his hardest to close the door as softly as he could, sneaking down the stairs. He winced when he stepped on a creaky floorboard and quickly tried to tiptoe down the rest of the stairs without causing more noise. 

He reached the living room and sighed a soft breath of relief. As Virgil looked around, he realised he’d never really gotten the chance to look around Roman’s house. Usually when he came over, they went straight up to Roman’s room and hung out there - for privacy’s sake. 

As he reached the front door, he couldn’t help but look over at a picture held in a beautiful silver frame that sat on the shoe cabinet by the door. It was a picture of Roman and his two siblings. Roman was in the middle, grinning widely and exposing his two missing front teeth. He seemed to be dressed in a choir robe, as were his brother and sister. Virgil smiled.

He supposed performing ran in the family. 

Next to that picture was a card held in a lightwood frame, drawn with crayon and pencil. On it said: “I LOVE YOU MOMMY, LOVE RO RO”. Underneath the text was a crudely drawn picture of a woman and a little boy holding hands. Virgil grinned and stifled a chuckle at the sheer adorableness of it all. 

He snapped a picture of it and texted Roman quickly. 

**Me to Princey <3, 5:40pm:**

_ [Image] _

**Me to Princey <3, 5:40pm:**

_ Ro Ro? _

**Princey <3 to Me, 5:40pm:**

_ Omg _

**Princey <3 to Me, 5:40pm:**

_ Pls don’t look at those just leave my house !!! That’s so embarrassing jfdklsa _

**Me to Princey <3, 5:40pm:**

_ im definitely changing your name in my contacts now lolol _

**Princey <3 to Me, 5:40pm:**

_ NOOOOOO if u do I’m breaking up with you virgil!!!! _

Virgil laughed and opened his contacts, changing his boyfriends contact name and sending a picture to Roman.

**Me to Princey <3, 5:40pm:**

_ it is done _

**Me to Princey <3, 5:40pm:**

_ <3  _

**Princey <3 to Me, 5:41pm:**

_ I can’t believe my boyfriend is a BULLY _

Virgil snorted at his ridiculousness. The sound resonated through the silent living room, making him jump. He slowly opened the door to Roman’s living room and left the house, closing the door behind him slowly. He allowed himself to sigh quietly in relief, turning back to his phone and grinning. 

_ God, _ his boyfriend was such a dork. A loveable dork though. Love...the word had been circulating through Virgil’s mind for a good amount of time now. Did that mean he  _ loved  _ Roman? Whenever he thought about him, he felt a fluttering sensation in his chest and stomach. It was a feeling he never wanted to go away. 

And being around Roman just felt so  _ easy _ . Sometimes they didn’t even have to speak. Being around each other was enough. Was that love?

“Excuse me?” 

Virgil jumped at the sudden voice and turned around, his eyes wide and hand clutching his chest from surprise. He turned around and saw a tan, slender woman with sleek black hair pulled into a bun standing behind him, a handbag in one hand and house keys in another.  _ Shit. _

_ “ _ I um...I’m sorry, I...I-I was h-here to visit Roman but I don’t think he’s...home.” Virgil said weakly, smiling sheepishly. His heart was beating a mile a minute. The woman seemed to sense his anxiousness and took pity on him, smiling kindly and placing a gentle hand on his arm. 

“Oh, _el pobrecito,_ no need to look so alarmed! I’m Roman’s mother, Angela.” She said, rubbing his arm gently. She checked her watch and sighed. “It’s Friday so...Roman is probably out with his friends. Would you like to come inside for some tea, dear?” 

Virgil smiled sheepishly and shook his head.

“I-I don’t want to impose...”

“Nonsense! Any friend of Roman’s is  _ family _ . Come in, you can wait for him inside!” Angela unlocked the door to the house and pulled Virgil inside. Something about her energy made her almost magnetic. Virgil couldn’t say no. 

Virgil sat down at the kitchen table and watched as Angela began boiling the kettle.

“Are you hungry?” She asked, brushing a strand of hair from her face and looking at Virgil who looked very small and slightly overwhelmed. She smiled and shook his head. “I’m sorry, I know I can be quite intense at times.” 

Virgil smiled.

“N-No, you’re fine! Um...I’m not hungry though, thank you.” He said. Angela hummed skeptically but poured Virgil a mug of tea anyway, setting it in front of him. 

“You’re so skinny! At least take some  _ croquetas  _ home with you!” Angela fussed, going to the fridge and pulling out a tupperware container filled with food. Virgil simply smiled. He figured it was easier to let her do what she wanted rather than protest. “So, how do you know my little  _ Príncipe _ ?”  

At the mention of Roman, Virgil’s smile grew. Angela looked at him with a soft expression. She’d seen that look before. 

“W-We go to school together. We’re in some of the same classes and...we’re friends.” Virgil said, trying to distract himself by taking a sip of tea. 

“Friends, hm?” She asked, sitting down across from him and resting her chin on her palm. “Nothing more?” 

Virgil choked on his tea and Angela laughed joyfully, throwing her head back. It reminded him of Roman. 

“What? No! I...What makes you think that?” 

Angela smiled and sighed.

“You remind me of me when I was younger.” She said softly, shaking her head. “That look in your eye when you think about him. It’s the same look I got when I think about my Christopher.” 

Virgil blushed heavily and smiled, looking down at where his thumb was rubbing at the smooth ceramic of his mug. 

“I-I...we’re just friends.” Virgil murmured, though it was clear Angela didn’t believe him. She simply hummed and patted his hand lovingly. 

“Okay,” She replied, shaking her head with a knowing smile. She stood back up and grabbed a small box, putting a few fried looking things into a small box. Angela handed the box to Virgil. “Take these. It’s a family recipe. Roman helped me make them last night.” 

Virgil smiled and took the box. 

“Thank you, Mrs. Kingsley, that’s very kind.” Virgil replied, putting the box into his backpack. 

“Oh, it’s no problem. And call me Angela! You’re family now, _ el nubarrón _ .” Angela pinched his cheeks and watched as Virgil turned towards the door. “I’ll tell Roman that you came by.” 

Virgil smiled and waved at Angela one last time before opening the door and leaving the house once again. He breathed out slowly, allowing the tension to leave his shoulders. He looked around the neighbourhood before starting his walk back home, physically  _ and  _ emotionally exhausted. 

He guessed he had some things to think over. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a kind of long installment!! I hope that you guys enjoy this chapter! Roman’s mom is speaking Spanish by the way!! And a little disclaimer: I do not speak Spanish! I speak Chinese (badly) so I had to mostly rely on Google Translate and language websites to help me out with what Roman’s mom was saying! 
> 
> I’m not sure if it came across but at the end, Roman’s mom is calling Virgil ‘cloud’ as in ‘storm cloud’! I’m not sure if that comes across cause I just google translated ‘storm cloud’ into Spanish and worked it in there so…I’m sorry in if it makes no sense!!! <3
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated <3 thanks so much for the awesome response again guys!! <3
> 
> \- Brit xx


	10. Chapter 10

After Roman’s talk with Patton at the counter, he grabbed his drink and sat back down, his head still in a daze.

Should he talk to Logan and Damien about Virgil? They hadn’t reacted the best way the first time but…maybe they would be more open now. Maybe if he introduced the idea to them slowly then…they’d get used to it. Maybe even accept Virgil as one of them?

Roman pouted. Fat chance. Damien and Logan were great guys but they were known for being rather…stubborn.

“Roman, look! Logan’s talking to Patton.” Damien whispered, nudging Roman and breaking him out of his spell. Roman perked up and looked behind him, watching Logan as he and Patton spoke.

Roman thought he saw a hint of a blush on Logan’s cheeks and he grinned. It was rare to see his best friend so flustered and it was interesting to say the least. 

* * *

Logan was certain he was  _failing_ at this. 

If you asked him to recite all of Charles Baudelaire’s poems from memory, no problem. Name that random constellation in the sky? Piece of cake! But flirt with a cute boy in his class? No way.

One glance at Patton’s smile and his  _unfairly adorable_ dimples and Logan was done for. He was sure that his brain had somehow fallen out of his skull and onto the wooden floor beneath him. 

“…and you like blueberries, right?” Logan focused his eyes back on Patton, seeing his head tilted slightly to the side. God, he looked like a puppy. How was this fair?!

“Yes! I-I do like blueberries.” Logan said, feeling himself smile when Patton smiled and pulled a blueberry muffin out from the pastry case. 

“I remember last year when we had English together you always carried a little case of berries with you in case you got peckish.” Patton admitted, a blush tinting his cheeks. His eyes widened when he realised what he’d just said. “N-Not that I was watching you! I wasn’t, I just…I’m observant I suppose! And I like learning about what people like and dislike so…” 

Logan smiled. Maybe he wasn’t the only one who was just a tad bit flustered. 

“It’s alright, Patton, I…I think it’s quite sweet that you remembered that.” Logan said. Patton smiled and placed the muffin on a plate, sliding it over to Logan.

“And what’ll you have to drink?” 

Now his brain told him  _not_ to order a drink with his muffin. It was already nearing 6pm and caffeine did… _things_  to him. He wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight. 

But the soft look in Patton’s eyes and the thumping of his heart told him to throw that all out the window and just order his usual.

“Um…a large iced vanilla latte with an extra shot of espresso, please.” 

God, damn it, Logan.

“Awesome, I’ll get that for you.” Patton said, punching it into the register.

“Thank you, Patton. How much do I owe you?” Logan asked, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket.

“Nothing! It’s on the house.” Patton replied, smiling brightly. “If…” 

Logan furrowed his eyebrows.

“If?” 

Patton sighed and looked behind Logan at the table where Roman and Damien were sat. 

“I…I know things between Virgil and Roman ended but I can  _sense_ that Virgil misses him. They really like each other.” His soft blue eyes were locked on Logan’s. “I know Virgil isn’t necessarily your favourite person in the world but he makes Roman happy. Or at least he  _made_ Roman happy until…” Patton trailed off. 

Logan sighed and rubbed at the back of his head. He could feel where his hair gel was beginning to wear off, letting a few stray hairs escape their hold. 

“Patton, how can you be so sure that Roman and Virgil were happy together? I mean…if they broke up, there must have been something wrong between them, right?” 

Patton frowned.

“Logan, do you really think that you and Damien being against the very  _thought_ of Roman and Virgil being a couple had nothing to do with their break up?”  _Wow, straight for the jugular._ “I’m not saying that you have to be best friends with him but…give him a chance? Virgil is a really amazing person! And I just know you two would get along if you tried. And he makes Roman happy. Isn’t that enough?”

Logan chewed on the inside of his bottom lip, his eyebrows knitted together. The thought of Roman’s happiness had been running through his mind for the past few weeks now. He wasn’t entirely sure if he and Damien had done the right thing by him. 

“I-I suppose so…” Logan mumbled. Patton smiled gently. 

“I didn’t mean to make you feel guilty or upset, I just…want you to think about it.” Patton said, patting Logan’s hand. “Now, take your muffin and go back to your table. I’ll bring your coffee by in a second.” 

Logan looked up and smiled lightly, his hand tingling where it was touching Patton’s.

“But I didn’t pay for it.”

Patton winked. Logan’s stomach tossed and turned. 

“Don’t worry about it. This one’s on me.” 

* * *

“What do you think they’re talking about?” Damien asked, stealing a bite of Roman’s cookie. Roman frowned and smacked Damien’s hand lightly, though he didn’t stop him. “Do you think he’s actually gonna ask him out?” 

Roman scoffed. 

“As if. You know Logan, he’s hopeless when it comes to boys.” Roman commented with a fond smile. He remembered when Logan had a crush on Bill Nye. He wouldn’t even tear his eyes off the TV screen for a  _minute_  when he was on. 

Roman and Damien saw Logan turn and walk back to their table so they turned their heads and pretended to be immersed in conversation. When Logan sat back down, Roman couldn’t help but notice he had a strange look on his face. 

“What’s wrong? Did Patton say something?” Roman asked, furrowing his eyebrows. Patton wasn’t the type of person to be mean spirited or rude to anyone (unless there were special circumstances). 

Logan shook his head and took his glasses off, rubbing his eyes. 

“No, no. I mean…not really. I just have a little bit of a headache, that’s all.” Logan murmured, avoiding looking in Roman’s direction. He knew if he did, those feelings of guilt would all come rushing back. Logan didn’t want to have to deal with that right now. 

* * *

An hour and some coffees and pastries later, Roman, Damien, and Logan arrived back at Roman’s house. He parked his car in the driveway and exited, digging his keys out of his pocket before he realised the kitchen light was on. He smiled.

“My mom’s home guys so you know the drill.” Roman said, approaching the front door with his best friends in tow. “No-”

“Swearing or insults, we know.” Damien droned, rolling his eyes as he walked up Roman’s porch steps. “We’ve only been coming over for the past, what, 8 years?”

Roman rolled his eyes and smiled before opening the door.

“Is that my little  _Príncipe_?” Roman heard her before he saw her. He blushed brightly at the nickname and toed off his shoes, walking into the living room and immediately being scooped up into a tight hug by his mother. 

He grinned and reciprocated the hug, burying his nose in her hair. At 6′1″, Roman was already significantly taller than his mother who stood at a modest 5′5″. But neither of them minded. It made for better hugs. 

“And Logan and Damien, come here!” Angela walked over to Logan and Damien, hugging them both tightly. “Oh, you boys!  _Eres tan lindo!_ Are you hungry? I’ll make dinner.” 

Logan and Damien couldn’t fight the smiles that were growing on their faces. Angela was one of the sweetest women that either one of them had ever met. 

“No, thank you Mrs. Kingsley.” Logan stated, smiling bashfully when she tutted and told him (again) to call her Angela. “We just had a snack over at O’Connors so we’re all rather full.” 

Damien elbowed him.

“Speak for yourself, dude.” Damien mumbled before smiling at Angela who laughed.

“Dami, you’re the only one who really appreciates my cooking.” She said, pinching his cheeks and laughing joyfully. Damien blushed brightly and turned his head slightly, embarrassed. 

Angela turned and began walking back to the kitchen before she remembered something.

“Oh, Roman, before I forget,” She announced, smiling like she had a secret. “Someone came over asking for you! But you were out with the boys so he left before you got here.”

The blood drained from Roman’s face. Oh, God, was he about to get found out?

“Um…wh-who was it?” Roman asked, trying his best to come off uncaring. 

Angela smiled and Roman swallowed thickly. He knew what that smile meant. It was the same smile she gave him when he introduced her to Cameron Michaels at his 5th grade bake sale, the brightest of blushes on his face and a starry look in his eye. 

“A lovely boy, I invited him in for some tea.” Angela wiped her hands on her apron and placed them on her hips. 

“His name was Virgil.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ll admit I’m not incredibly proud of this chapter. It feels kind of more like a filler chapter or a set up for what’s going to happen next time but I guess these conversations had to happen at some point, right? 
> 
> I hope you guys enjoyed it anyway! Coming up next: A confrontation :o
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated! And you can follow me on tumblr if y'all want! @RomanticSanders
> 
> \- Brit xx


	11. Chapter 11

“His name was Virgil.” 

Pause. 

Roman’s heart began beating quickly in his chest. 

“Um…” 

“Virgil? Why was Virgil here?” Damien asked, raising one eyebrow high in the air. “Is he stalking you or something?” 

“Uh…” Roman could feel his face start to get hot. This  _wasn’t_  how he imagined this going. 

“You guys broke up…why would he want to visit you?” Logan asked, looking at Roman with his eyes narrowed. He could smell something was up. 

“You broke up?” Angela asked, knitting her eyebrows together and tutting quietly. “I didn’t even know you two were dating! Why would you break up with him? He’s such a nice boy!”

“I-I didn’t, Mama-” Roman started. 

“Wait, you  _didn’t_ break up with him?” Damien asked, stepping closer to Roman and crossing his arms. “You guys are still dating?”

“No! We’re not-” 

“Roman, what is going on here?” Logan asked, standing next to Damien and raising an eyebrow. 

Roman looked between Logan and Damien, who looked angry and confused, and his mother who (bless her heart) just looked confused and…slightly sad. 

“Um…” Roman had a lump in his throat and could feel his stomach churning uncomfortably. He sighed and swallowed thickly, his eyes falling to the floor. “Can I talk to you guys upstairs?” 

Logan and Damien looked at each other skeptically before saying goodbye to Roman’s mother and beginning the walk up the stairs to Roman’s room. 

Angela watched, a heavy feeling in her chest. She hated seeing her son so upset but she didn’t know what she could do to fix it. 

“Roman,  _¿_ _que esta pasando?_ ” She asked quietly, walking over and placing a hand gently on her son’s arm. Roman sighed quietly and rubbed his face with his hands.  **(Translation: _What’s going on?_ )**

“ _Lo explicaré más tarde_.” Roman replied, mustering up a small smile and patting her hand before walking up the stairs.  **(Translation: _I’ll explain later._ ) **

* * *

“What do you think’s going on?” Damien asked, sitting down on Roman’s bed. Logan sighed, thoughts from all sides crashing into each other in his brain.

“I…don’t know.” Logan mumbled. He hated not being in control. He hated not  _knowing._  “But I have a feeling that Roman has a lot of explaining to do.”

At that, they both grew silent, waiting for Roman to join them. They heard his slow footsteps walking up the stairs, obviously taking his time. Roman didn’t really  _want_ to face what was in his bedroom right now.

Roman pushed his bedroom door open slowly and peered inside, biting his lip when he saw Logan and Damien looking at him, both confused and upset. 

“So?” Logan asked, crossing his arms and cocking one hip out. Roman shut the door quietly, guilt seeping into his pores. 

“So…” Roman replied, his voice barely above a whisper. “Um…nice weather we’re having, huh?”

“Cut the bullshit, Ro.” Damien said, standing up off the bed and leaning against Roman’s bedpost instead. “Tell us what’s going on.” 

Roman bit his lip and sat down on his desk chair, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. 

“Okay, well…you know how…Virgil and I broke up a few weeks ago?” Roman started, running his fingers through his hair. He was filled with a nervous energy he’d never felt around his best friends before. 

“Yes, we remember.” Logan replied, narrowing his eyes. “You were sad about it for about a week and then you told us you’d gotten over him.” 

_Well, here goes nothing._

“Well, Virgil and I have been…we didn’t really break up.” Roman said quickly. He couldn’t bring himself to look at either Logan or Damien. “We just  _said_  we broke up because…well, because of you guys!”

“Us?!” Damien clenched his hands into fists, his knuckles turning white. “You lied to us for weeks! What the  _fuck,_ Roman? We’re your friends!”

Logan didn’t say anything. He could hear two sides of himself battling with each other. 

“I-I didn’t…Okay, so  _maybe_ I lied but…Virgil makes me happy! And I couldn’t pick between the two of you!” Roman exclaimed, standing up. He felt utterly helpless. “If I’d picked Virgil, I would’ve lost you two as my best friends but…I couldn’t…I  _really_  like him!” 

“Why?!” Damien exclaimed. His anger was searing through him. He knew that maybe he was overreacting but…how else was he supposed to react after finding out his  _best friend_  had been lying to them for weeks? “He’s a delinquent! He’s dangerous, Roman, how do you know that he’s not just…using you?!” 

Oh,  _hell no._ All the guilt in Roman’s body was replaced with hot,  _hot_ anger. How dare he?!

“What the fuck did you just say about my boyfriend, Dami?” Roman glared at Damien. “You don’t know anything about him! You didn’t even bother to get to know him when I introduced you guys to him! All you know is what you’ve heard. You didn’t even bother to find out if those rumours were true or not - which, FYI, they aren’t!” 

“Maybe we should all take a bre-” Logan tried to intervene but Roman cut him off.

“And don’t you go trying to play the role of the mature responsible one. You are  _just_ as bad, Logan, if not worse!” Roman said. He knew he should’ve stopped. He should’ve paused, taken a breath, calmed down. But he just couldn’t. Not about this. “You’re supposed to be intelligent. You’re supposed to be the ‘logical’ one out of the three of us. But you didn’t bother to get to know Virgil either! You judged him right off the bat because of his appearance. And I’m  _sure_ you know how shitty that feels, don’t you?”

He did. Ever since Logan and Damien were younger they’d been outcasts. Logan because he’d been skinny and smart, not strong and tough like the other boys. And Damien because of his vitiligo mark over his left eye. They both knew what it was like to be judged and labelled an outcast by others. Maybe that’s why Roman was so upset. 

Roman paused, his anger being replaced by sadness. Resignation.

“You guys didn’t even give him a chance.” He whispered, his voice cracking. “Virgil makes me happy. He makes me  _so_  happy, you guys will never understand that.” Roman blinked rapidly, trying to force back the tears that threatened to spill. 

Logan and Damien were silent now. They didn’t know what to say. Damien was too stubborn to admit he was wrong. Logan…Logan was just thinking about the past few weeks. His argument with Patton and the talk they’d had today. He thought about how happy Roman had seemed over the past few weeks but…he’d just chocked that up to his excitement over senior year. 

“I think you guys should leave.” Roman said, his voice wobbling. He pointed to the door, looking away from them both. Logan and Damien looked at each other before wordlessly grabbing their things, opening the door, and leaving Roman’s bedroom. 

And then Roman was left alone. The silence was unbearable. He sat down on his desk chair and rested his head in his hands, shaking his head. 

How had everything gone so wrong so quickly?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, truth time: I went to a party last night and got a little bit drunk and when I got home I wrote this chapter. I also didn't proofread so...I'm sorry if there are any mistakes that I didn't catch while I was writing it! 
> 
> ALSO I really hope the Spanish makes sense,,if it doesn’t feel free to correct me!! I don’t speak Spanish so I had to rely on Google Translate!! 
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated! And you can always find me on Tumblr for updates (@romanticsanders)!
> 
> \- Brit xx


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NOTE: We delve into Damien’s past here and it may or may not be a bit triggering! Damien’s father is discussed very briefly and he’s not referenced as being the nicest or kindest of men so if that’s triggering to you, you may want to be careful when you reach the italicised portion of this chapter!

**Ro Ro <3 to Me, 6:31pm:**

_Virgil…I did something_

Virgil had just arrived back home when he’d gotten the text from Roman. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and raised his eyebrows. 

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:31pm:**

_did u kill someone_

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:31pm:**

_the trunk of my car is p big but idk if i can fit a body in there_

A few minutes passed as Virgil walked up to his room and shut the door, taking off his backpack and his hoodie and sitting on his desk chair. He checked his phone and saw that Roman had read his messages but hadn’t replied. That was…odd. 

Roman was a  _very_  good texter. He was known for texting back within a minute or two normally unless he was asleep or at rehearsal or studying. 

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:37pm:**

_babe??_

**Ro Ro <3 to Me, 6:37pm: **

_I know we just saw each other but can I come over?_

**Ro Ro <3 to Me, 6:37pm:**

_Or you can comet o mine. I just w anna see you._

The next thing that alarmed Virgil was the slight typos. Roman wasn’t always grammatical when he texted but he refused to make typos. He said he thought they made him look ‘uncivilized’. 

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:37pm:**

_um…of course you can come over. my folks are home tho_

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:37pm:**

_remy’s at swim practice so he won’t be back til later_

**Ro Ro <3 to Me, 6:37pm:**

_Oh I don’t want to impose on you and your family. It’s okay, I’ll just see you tomorrow._

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:38pm:**

_no dont do that id love to see you rn_

**Me to Ro Ro <3, 6:38pm:**

_wait i know where we can meet_

* * *

20 minutes later and Virgil stopped his car outside Raleigh Park. He got out of his car and walked towards the gate, leaning against the metal bars and looking over the playground and it’s familiar surroundings.

So much had happened over the past few weeks. And it had all started right here. Well…by ‘right here’, Virgil meant over by the swings. 

He pulled out his phone to text Roman to ask where he was but before he could, he saw a familiar looking Toyota Corolla roll into view. He smiled automatically upon seeing his boyfriend but his smile faltered when he saw Roman coming out of his car, his eyes red and cheeks rubbed raw from wiping away…tears? 

Roman got out of his car and looked up, spotting Virgil standing by the gates. He ran towards him and immediately engulfed him in a hug, burying his face in Virgil’s neck. He couldn’t stop a few stray tears from leaking out of his eyes, soaking the neck of Virgil’s shirt. 

“Hey, hey…it’s okay.” He heard Virgil say quietly, his arms encircling Roman’s waist and his nose nuzzling right next to Roman’s ear. He was assaulted by his boyfriend’s familiar jasmine-y scent. “What happened? I thought you were with Logan and Damien.” 

His heart shattered further at the mention of his best- well…ex-best friends. Roman clung harder and shook his head. Virgil bit his lip and rubbed Roman’s back gently, pressing a light kiss to his temple. 

“Ro, can you tell me what happened?” He asked quietly, pulling away slightly so he could see his boyfriend’s face. Just as he’d suspected, Roman’s face was covered with tears. He tutted quietly and wiped away his tears gently with the sleeves of his hoodie. 

“I…I told them.” Roman said quietly, sniffling and wiping his nose on his sleeve. “I told Logan and Damien about us. About how we’re dating and…”

“…and?” Virgil probed gently, guiding Roman towards a park bench. 

Roman shook his head and covered his face. 

“I fucked everything up.”

* * *

Damien got home and slammed the door shut, still seething with anger. He felt betrayed! And by his  _best friend_. The one person Damien could trust to never lie to him. 

Damien could remember the first day they’d met. 

* * *

_It was in Kindergarten and Damien’s mom had forgot to pack his lunch so during lunchtime he’d sat and watched as the other kids ate their sandwiches or their lovingly prepared lunches. Damien didn’t care. His mom had probably just bought him a lunchable and forgotten to put it in his backpack anyway. He wasn’t missing much._

_And besides, Damien knew his mama wasn’t doing the best. She was under a lot of stress and papa didn’t make that any better with his much-too-loud voice. Damien may have been young but he was perceptive._

_Damien didn’t care too much about not having food. After all, he had managed to pack his favourite thing in the entire world._

_He looked over at the class cubbies where his backpack was sitting. His best friend was inside that backpack. A stuffed snake that his abuelita had bought him when she’d taken him to the zoo last week. She’d told him not to tell his papa that she bought it for him and told him to hide it. Damien didn’t mind. He liked having things only he and abuelita knew about._

_He’d named the snake Blanco because he was yellow with pretty white markings and a white underbelly, just like the one his abuelita had taken him to see. All Damien wanted to do was run to his backpack and play with Blanco but stupid Mrs. Metternich said they weren’t allowed to play with toys during lunchtime._

_“¡Hola!” He heard suddenly. He turned and saw a little boy standing next to him holding a bright red lunch box with some sort of prince character on the front. “Mi mamá te escuchó hablando español con tu mamá y me dijo que fuera tu amigo. Do you wanna be friends?” **(Translation: Hello! My mum heard you speaking Spanish to your mum and she told me to be your friend.)**  
_

_Damien, slightly taken aback by this boy’s sudden request. He shrugged and nodded, watching as the boy sat down next to him and opened his lunch box._

_“My name is Roman Delmont Kingsley! I’m 6 and a half years old.” Roman said, pulling out a small bag of apple slices. “Do you want an apple?”  
_

_Damien was about to say no when his stomach let out a soft gurgle. He bit his lip and nodded hesitantly, taking an apple slice from Roman’s bag._

_“What’s your name?” Roman asked, watching as Damien took a bite of his apple.  
_

_“Damien Gadiel De Santos.” Damien whispered, his mouth full of apple. He guessed he was hungrier than he thought. Roman smiled and looked at the table, noticing Damien didn’t have a lunchbox.  
_

_“Did you finish your lunch already?” He asked, eyes wide. Lunch had just started! Maybe he was in the presence of one of those super fast eaters like his big brother Ryan had shown him on TV. Damien shook his head though.  
_

_“My mama left my lunch at home.” He mumbled, pulling on the hem of his shirt. Roman gasped.  
_

_“Oh! Do you want half of my sandy-wich?” Roman asked, pulling out another small ziploc bag with a sandwich inside, cut into perfect triangles. Damien licked his lips and looked at Roman who was smiling widely. He nodded slowly and Roman reached into the bag, handing Damien two small triangles. “My big sister told me yesterday that her bestest friend Kayla taught her that ‘sharing means caring’.”  
_

_Damien smiled slightly and bit into the sandwich. A simple ham sandwich had never tasted better._

* * *

Damien walked into the living room and saw his little sister Dana studying on the kitchen table, still wearing her cheerleading uniform. He sighed and walked into the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of milk.

“I thought you were at Ro’s tonight.” Dana said, not taking her eyes off of her textbook. When she didn’t get a response, she looked up and saw Damien, staring off into the distance. She sighed and closed her book, leaning back in her chair. “What’s wrong?” 

Damien looked at her and sat down across from her. 

“Roman lied to me. And Logan.” Damien mumbled, his knuckles gripping his glass so tightly he felt like it would shatter. Dana raised her eyebrows.

“About?” 

Damien sighed and began recounting the story to Dana who listened with rapt attention. When he’d finished, Dana let out a low whistle and chuckled, shaking her head.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing, just…your life is  _way_ more dramatic than mine.” Dana remarked with a smirk, Damien rolled his eyes and went to get up from the table. But before he could leave, Dana began talking again. “So…what now?” 

“What do you mean what now? How am I supposed to trust him after he-”

“Lied because you wouldn’t accept that someone else made him  _just_  as happy as you guys do?” Dana asked, tilting her head to the side, giving Damien a scrutinizing look.  “I mean…Roman didn’t exactly think this whole thing through but…what else was he supposed to do?” 

Damien paused, his eyes on a spot on the floor. It was a nice spot. Dana sighed. 

“Listen,  _tonto_ , Roman loves you guys. But maybe he also loves this other guy. Isn’t it your  _and_  Logan’s job to accept him if he makes Roman happy?” She asked, tightening her ponytail and gathering her books. “I’m not saying everything is your fault but…you definitely didn’t  _help_.” As she walked past him, she patted his cheek gently and bounced up the stairs to her room. 

Damien hated how smart his sister was sometimes.

* * *

Roman finished telling Virgil what had happened. The tears had stopped but that didn’t mean that Roman’s heart wasn’t in pieces. He’d rested his head on Virgil’s shoulder, Virgil’s arm resting comfortably around him. If nothing else, Virgil’s presence made everything  _slightly_ better.

“I’m sorry.” Virgil said quietly, swallowing thickly. He hated hearing Roman so upset. “This is all my fault.” 

Wait, what?

Roman lifted his head, his eyebrows furrowed and mouth set in a deep frown.

“What? No! Ho-How could this be your fault?” He asked, “It’s not your fault that Logan and Damien are too stubborn to realise how happy you make me.” 

Virgil frowned.

“I didn’t  _have_ to hit on you that day in detention.” Virgil mumbled, shaking his head. “I was being selfish. I was thinking about myself, I didn’t think about how you might’ve felt or…or how my reputation might’ve made me look. I just saw you and I knew I needed to say  _something_ because…I mean, look at you!” 

Roman blushed at that. 

“I knew that if I hadn’t spoken to you, I would’ve hated myself for it later. But maybe I just should’ve kept it in.” Virgil said softly, studying a ladybug on a blade of grass rather than looking at his boyfriend. “If I had, you wouldn’t…you wouldn’t be in this position right now, crying. Your best friends wouldn’t be fighting with you about…about me.” 

“Are you saying you regret our relationship?” Roman asked quietly. Virgil’s head whipped up to look at Roman.

“No! A-Absolutely not, you are quite possibly the  _best_  thing that has ever happened to me, Roman Kingsley.” Virgil said, grasping Roman’s hands. “But it’s because of me that you’re so upset right now. It’s because I asked you out without thinking and-” 

“And that decision has made me happier than I have been in months.” Roman said softly, reaching up to play with the hair right above Virgil’s ear. Virgil leaned into it and Roman smiled. “I…You make me feel the most intense of emotions and I love it. I love how you look at me and how you make me feel and how you act and talk like you don’t give a  _shit_  what anyone thinks of you - even though I know you’re scared of what others think.” Virgil smiled at that and Roman counted that as a success. 

“I love how beautiful and smart you are and how  _talented_.” Roman took a shaky breath in and bit his lip, smiling. “And…I love you.” 

Virgil’s heart began beating in his ears and he grinned widely, looking down bashfully and shaking his head.

“Shit, you…you’re such a sap.” Virgil whined, leaning forward and hiding his face in Roman’s shoulder, making the other boy laugh. He sighed quietly and nuzzled Roman’s neck gently, pressing a gentle kiss there. “But I love you too.”

And there they sat together, drinking each other in. It wasn’t perfect. It wasn’t a resolution to their problems but…it was love. And neither of them could ask for anything else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In this installment: the boys get a good bout of wisdom from their siblings! I really really love Dana guys. I hope the abundance of sudden OC’s aren’t,,jarring or annoying! And I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! We haven’t really seen much of Damien during this fic so I decided to change that this time. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are wildly appreciated and it would be great if you guys could follow me on tumblr at @romanticsanders!
> 
> See you in a day or two! 
> 
> -Brit x


	13. Chapter 13

“Say it again.” 

Virgil let out a quiet huff of a laugh and smiled, blushing brightly. He turned to Roman who was staring at him with that stupid  _endearing_  look on his face. 

“I love you.” 

Roman grinned and squealed, leaning over and kissing Virgil’s cheek.

“I love you too.” He mumbled, nuzzling Virgil’s cheek gently.

It was the day after they’d said those three simple words to each other. They were hanging out at Virgil’s place watching movies (and  _not_ watching them, if you catch my drift). 

Roman sighed and settled down, cuddling up into Virgil’s side. 

“Thank you.” He murmured, playing with the zipper on his boyfriend’s hoodie. Virgil hummed and paused their movie.

“What for?” 

Roman looked up and smiled fondly. Virgil’s heart melted.

“For being there when I needed you.” Virgil blushed but pulled Roman in for a sweet kiss. Roman smiled against his lips. “And for being the best, most  _lovable_  boyfriend that a guy could ask for.” 

At that, Virgil laughed and shoved Roman away gently. 

“You’re such a sap,” Virgil mumbled. He looked over and saw Roman batting his eyelashes expectantly and he sighed, shaking his head with a smile. “But…I love you.” 

Roman pecked his lips lightly. 

“I love you too, Sunshine.”

* * *

“So…are we gonna talk about yesterday?” 

Logan looked up from his book at Damien who was lounging on his bed, phone in hand and lollipop dangling from his mouth. He sighed and took his glasses off, rubbing his eyes. 

“We should.” Logan said, crossing his arms. Damien rolled onto his stomach and looked at Logan. “None of us handled that situation…well. But if we’re being fair here, Damien, we didn’t give Virgil much of a chance.”

Damien sighed and crossed his arms, resting his chin on top of them. Dana’s words from last night  _and_  Remy’s words from a few weeks ago were running through his mind. 

“I guess that’s true.” Damien mumbled, taking the lollipop out of his mouth. “But he lied to us for weeks! I mean…there were  _other_  ways he could have handled this situation.” 

Logan hummed and sucked on his teeth.

“That’s true…however, doesn’t the fact that Roman felt  _compelled_  to lie to us tell you something?” Logan asked, slipping his glasses back on and sitting next to Damien on the bed. “We all did things we shouldn’t have in this situation…the only thing we have control over now is how we handle it.” 

Damien looked up at Logan and narrowed his eyes.

“When did you get so zen about this situation? Last I checked you didn’t like Virgil just as much as I did.”

Logan fell silent and allowed himself to flop backwards onto his bed so his head was by Damien’s knees. 

“Well…maybe I’ve had a change of heart recently.” Logan remarked, his eyes watching as a moth buzzed around his ceiling light. Damien hummed knowingly. 

“Everyone seems to be having those these days.” Damien said quietly.

Logan could only nod his head in agreement. 

* * *

Monday was…weird. 

As Roman went about his morning routine, he  _almost_  caught himself grabbing an extra granola bar for Damien before he left the house. He hovered over the box before he shoved his hand back into his pocket, gripping onto his car keys tightly. 

It was like everything around him was  _purposely_ trying to remind him of what had happened on Friday night. 

First, his phone started playing Damien’s favourite song on Spotify and, since Roman was a very safe and responsible driver, he couldn’t bring himself to press ‘skip’. Then, he saw a woman walking Logan’s favourite dog breed. He saw three friends coming out of O’Connor’s bakery together all holding coffee’s. 

Now, that one wasn’t specific to his, Logan’s, and Damien’s friendship but their happiness just felt so  _pointed_. 

Roman arrived at school eventually and parked in his regular spot. Just as he got out, he saw Logan’s car pull in and he hurriedly grabbed his bag and walked into the building, hoping he hadn’t been seen. Roman liked to think he was rather brave at the best of times but…deep down he was still a coward. 

He walked to his locker slowly and sighed, opening it. The pictures he’d taped inside were staring at him and he winced, turning away and trying to focus on just putting his books away. 

“Morning, Princey.” 

Roman jumped at the sudden voice in his ear and arms around his waist but he sighed and smiled, leaning into it. 

“Morning.” He said, turning to Virgil and pecking his lips lightly. “How are you?” 

Virgil raised his eyebrows. 

“I’m a little more interested in you.” He said, leaning against the wall next to Roman’s locker. “How are you doing?” 

Roman shrugged as he pulled out his English textbook. 

“The drive here was hard but seeing you is helping.” Roman said, nudging his boyfriend gently and giving him a smile. Virgil smiled back and looked around before pressing a light kiss to his cheek.

“Oh, my God!” Roman and Virgil jumped slightly when they heard a squeal from down the hall. They both whipped their heads to the source of the sound and found Patton and Remy standing a few feet away. Patton’s hands were clasped in front of him and Remy had his trademark lazy smile on his face, though his eyes were sparkling through his glasses. 

“Um…”

“Virgil, you didn’t tell us you and Roman got back together!” Patton said excitedly, running forward and enveloping them both in a hug. He pulled away and examined Roman and Virgil’s shocked faces before laughing. “Sorry, I’m just…excited! You two are  _so_  cute together!” 

Roman blushed and closed his locker, a blush high on his cheeks.

“Thank you, Patton, that’s very kind of you to say.” Roman replied, looking at the both of them before turning to Virgil. He wasn’t sure how to proceed here.

Did he tell them they’d been dating this whole time? What if they got mad at Virgil? Then they’d  _both_  be stuck with no friends. Though they had each other so maybe it wouldn’t be so-

“Actually, Pat, Roman and I have been dating for the past couple weeks.” Virgil admitted, rubbing the back of his neck shyly. Remy and Patton grew silent before Remy cursed quietly, pulling $5 out of his jacket pocket. 

“We knew! We just didn’t know when you were going to tell us.” Remy said, pressing the money into Patton’s waiting hand. “It’s pretty hard to hide things from your  _twin brother_. I live next to you, I can hear your phone conversations.” 

Virgil flushed bright red and turned to hide his face in Roman’s shoulder. Roman laughed boisterously, feeling about 10 times lighter. 

“So…you’re not upset that we lied?” Roman asked tentatively. Patton smiled as he pocketed his money. 

“Well…lying isn’t the right thing to do in most situations but…you guys were in a tough spot.” Patton said, clutching his books to his chest. “There were definitely other ways you could’ve handled the situation but Remy and I aren’t mad.” Roman and Virgil both let out a quiet breath of relief.

“Thanks, guys.” Virgil murmured, “I’m sorry we lied.” 

Remy shrugged and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.

“It’s whatever. You had to do what you had to do. And just  _by the way_ , I can always tell when you’re lying, Virgie.” Remy replied with a smirk. Virgil groaned as Roman grinned, delighted.

“ _Virgie?”_  He asked, his voice tinged with joy as Virgil cursed and mumbled under his breath something about smothering Remy in his sleep. “That is  _precious!_  I’m so calling you Virgie from now on.” 

As the four of them talked happily, Logan and Damien watched from Damien’s locker. They’d constructed a game plan together on Saturday, they just…needed to find an optimal time to set it in motion. 

“He does look really happy, doesn’t he?” Damien asked, adjusting his hat. Logan nodded quietly. 

A large part of him just wanted to run over there and apologise to Roman immediately. He hadn’t gone more than a day without talking to his best friend since they’d met.  _But_  Logan also wasn’t one for dramatics so he stayed put.  

“So…lunch?” Damien asked, turning to Logan and looking for reassurance. For once, Logan looked as nervous as he felt. 

“Lunch.” 

* * *

When lunch came, Roman felt the nerves begin to stir in his stomach again. The only time he hadn’t sat with his best friends at lunch was, well, when one of them was sick. 

After class, Roman packed his things away slowly, biding his time before he had to walk to the cafeteria. He slipped his last book into his book bag and sighed, getting up and walking out the door slower than usual. As he did, he saw Patton walking out of his class with Virgil and he bit his lip, walking faster to catch up with them.

“Hi, guys!” He said, trying to hide his nervousness. His shoulders dropped when Patton shot him and easy smile and Virgil reached over to grab his hand. 

“Roman! Are you sitting with us at lunch today?” Patton asked gleefully. Virgil looked at his boyfriend hopefully. Roman let out a relieved breath and he nodded. 

“That would be wonderful, Patton, I’d love to.” He said, his nerves from earlier dissipating. 

“Oh! And you can invite Logan and Damien to sit with us too!” Patton said brightly. His smile faltered when he saw Virgil look at Roman worriedly, Roman’s face dropping just a tad. “I’m sorry, did I say something wrong?” 

“Um…” Virgil looked at Roman, looking for permission before filling Patton in. When Roman squeezed his hand wordlessly he turned back to his best friend. “I don’t think they’ll be joining us. They got into a pretty big fight about…us.”

Patton frowned, an expression you  _never_  wanted to see on someone so usually sunshine-y. 

“Oh, that’s a shame.” Patton said softly, reaching over and squeezing Roman’s hand. “I’m sorry I brought it up. Maybe they’ll come around?” 

Roman tried to smile and shrugged, squeezing Patton’s hand back gently. 

“Maybe.”

They fell silent for a few moments as they walked to the cafeteria. 

“Well…you can sit with us until they come to their senses!” Patton said happily, walking over to Roman’s side and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “We’re adopting you!”

Virgil smiled at Patton thankfully who winked in return. 

As the three of them reached the cafeteria, Roman felt a tentative tap on his shoulder. He turned around and blanched when he saw Logan and Damien standing behind him. 

“Roman, may we speak with you please?” Logan asked, his hands fidgeting with his backpack straps. His eyes flickered over to Virgil and he took a deep breath. “You as well, Virgil.” 

Virgil and Roman looked at each other before looking at Patton who smiled. 

“Go on, I’ll save you guys a seat!” Patton said happily, giving Logan a smile before sauntering off to the windows where he, Virgil, and Remy usually sat. 

Roman, Logan, Virgil, and Damien stood to the side of the hallway, Virgil and Roman’s hands firmly clasped.

“Can we help you?” Virgil asked defensively, one eyebrow raised. Roman fought the urge to swoon.  _Not the time, Kingsley!_

Damien and Logan at least had the sense to look guilty.

“We wanted to talk about Friday, Roman.” Damien said, looking up into his best friend’s eyes. “And we also wanted to apologise.” 

Roman raised his eyebrows.

“…I’m listening.” Roman said slowly. 

To Roman’s surprise, Logan and Damien turned their attention to Virgil first. Virgil swallowed thickly but tried his best not to show weakness.

“We wanted to apologise to you, Virgil. It wasn’t fair of us to make such…outlandish assumptions about you based on rumours that hold no truth.” Logan said. His tone remained fairly even but his eyes held a remorse that Roman could feel in his bones.

“Yeah, we’re really sorry.” Damien mumbled, “I know what it’s like to have people make shit up about you and it’s not…fun.” 

Virgil scoffed. 

“Yeah, no kidding.” He mumbled. He looked up at Logan and Damien who seemed to be awaiting a response. “But…it’s okay. You were just looking out for Roman and I guess I understand. We’re cool.” 

Logan and Damien both smiled thankfully before turning to Roman who was watching the exchange with wide eyes. 

“Roman, we-”

“Before you say anything,” Roman interrupted quickly, “I wanted to apologise as well. We shouldn’t have lied to you about being in a relationship in the first place, we just… _I_ just didn’t want to lose either of you. And I also want to apologise for lashing out at you on Friday, it was uncalled for.” Roman bowed his head guiltily. Logan raised his eyebrows in surprise. 

“Roman, you don’t need to apologise to us.” Logan said quietly, “It was because of us that you felt you had to lie and we should’ve been better friends to you.” 

“You make each other happy. That’s what’s most important.” Damien continued, a tentative smile growing on his face. “We should’ve seen that. We’re sorry we didn’t.”

The four of them grew silent but the air around them felt lighter. Roman grinned and let go of Virgil’s hand quickly to envelope his two best friends in a tight hug.

“I missed you guys.” He mumbled, nestling his nose into Logan’s shoulder and gripping onto Damien’s jacket tightly. “We didn’t talk for two days but it felt like I’d lost a limb.” 

“I felt the same.” Logan remarked, slowly returning the hug, though not quite as enthusiastically as Roman.

“Ditto.” Damien murmured. 

Virgil watched from the side, smiling lightly. When Roman broke apart from the group hug, he turned back to his boyfriend and grinned, hopping forward and wrapping an arm around Virgil’s shoulders, pressing a kiss to his temple as he felt his boyfriend snake an arm around his waist. 

“Do you want to sit with Patton, Remy, and I?” Virgil asked, shoving his free hand in his pocket. “I’m sure they won’t mind.”

At the mention of Patton and Remy, Damien and Logan both began to blush and Virgil raised his eyebrows, a slow smirk crossing his face. There was  _definitely_  a story there. Roman smirked. 

“Logan and Damien would  _love_ to sit with you and your friends, Virgil!” Roman said, grinning when Logan and Damien began to sputter indignantly. “Oh, hush, you know you want to.” 

Both of them fell quiet as they all walked into the cafeteria. They knew Roman was right. That didn’t mean they had to  _like_  that he was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jesus CHRIST this chapter was a bitch to write. I hope y’all like it anyway!! 
> 
> ALSO SIDE NOTE: A lot of you seem to like dana which i’m so happy about because i LOVE HER and i need more of her. I was actually thinking of writing a little side chappy about her so if that would interest anybody, let me know! Hope you guys liked the chapter!
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated as always! And if y'all wanna follow me on Tumblr, I sometimes post updates and notes there! @RomanticSanders
> 
> \- Brit xx


	14. Chapter 14

If anyone were to first meet them, they probably would’ve guessed that Logan, Virgil, Remy, Damien, Roman, and Patton had always been best friends. Ever since the resolution of ‘the fight’, they spent practically everyday together. 

But if you’d been looking more closely, you would’ve realised something peculiar happening between the happy group of six. 

Specifically, a significant look here, a batting of the eyelashes there…

In short, there was enough romantic tension amongst the group to fill a swimming pool. Twice. 

“So…” Patton started, keeping his eyes on his notebook. Logan looked up from his computer screen. They’d taken to studying together most days after school. Logan didn’t really need the extra study time but…maybe he liked the company just a bit. 

“Yes, Patton?” Logan asked, eyebrows slightly raised. Patton bit his lip and tapped the end of his pen on the lined paper. “You seem nervous about something.” 

Patton’s eyes flickered behind Logan to the homecoming dance poster on the billboard before looking back at him, nearly melting. Logan’s confused face was just so  _cute_!

“Nothing. Um…I was just wondering if you could help me with this simultaneous equation?” Patton asked, smiling sheepishly. Logan smiled kindly and walked to Patton’s side of the table, sitting next to him and shuffling closer. Patton smiled and watched Logan as he leaned over and took his pen, explaining the maths problem in front of him.

It was hard for Patton to resist sidling up to Logan and letting his instincts take over. After all, he just smelled so  _good_. But…Patton wasn’t sure if Logan liked him or not and he  _really_  didn’t want to risk the state of happiness their newfound friendship had put him in.

So instead, he remained stock-still in his chair, discretely watching the way Logan’s eyelashes so carefully fanned down, barely touching the lenses on his glasses as he blinked, and not  _really_  listening to what he was saying about simultaneous equations at all.

* * *

_You can do this, De Santos._ Damien thought as he walked slowly towards Remy’s locker.  _You’re gonna ask Remy Alexander to the dance, he’s gonna say yes, and you’re gonna have an amazing time and fall in love._

Okay, so maybe that was overkill but…Damien couldn’t help it. He was  _nervous_.  _Remy_  made him nervous. He was just so cool! It made Damien wanna be cooler so…maybe he acted a little cooler than he actually was sometimes. 

Maybe he told Remy about all the amazing vacations he’d been on when in reality, he’d only ever gone to visit his grandparents in Mexico once or twice. And maybe he told Remy he would  _totally_  go skydiving when really he was deathly afraid of heights. 

But…Remy didn’t actually care that much about all those superfluous little details. Remy actually  _liked_  Damien for who he was - an excitable geek with a big sweet tooth and a penchant for bad jokes. But Damien could hardly believe that someone could like him for… _him_. 

Damien walked up to Remy confidently and tried to give him a relaxed smile, though it came out as more of a grimace. 

“Hey, Remy.”

Remy looked up from where he was fixing his hair in the mirror he’d hung up in his locker and looked behind him, nodding when he saw Damien. 

“Hey, De Santos.” Remy closed his locker and leaned against it. “What’s up?”

Damien’s eyes widened and he swallowed thickly, suddenly unable to find his words. This happened sometimes around Remy…maybe Damien needed to go to a doctor or something. Maybe his tongue was swollen.

“Well-”

“Oh! Actually, it’s good that you’re here.” Remy reached into his pocket for his phone, pulling it out and taking a step closer to Damien so they could both look at his phone screen. Damien stood stiff as a board, eyes wide. 

“Um…it is?” Damien asked quietly, lifting his head slightly to look at Remy who was busy looking through his photos.

“Yeah, I just got my suit for the homecoming dance.” Remy said with a grin, tapping a picture of a mirror selfie he’d taken of himself. “I wanted to show you so we could match or something.” 

Hold on…match?

“Match?” Damien tilted his head to the side. Remy raised an eyebrow and chuckled, though not unkindly.

“Yeah, match. We’re going together, aren’t we?” Remy asked, seemingly unaware of the effect he was having on this poor, overwhelmed boy. 

“W-We are?” Damien exclaimed, raising his eyebrows. Remy looked taken aback. “I-I mean…we are! We are going to the dance together. Yeah.” He tried to appear cool and relaxed again though…Damien was sure he just looked…constipated. 

Remy seemed to relax at that and smiled, handing his phone to Damien. 

“Cool. I just bought this suit at the mall yesterday. It’s white with yellowish accents. Do you have anything that could match that?” Damien didn’t.

“Um…I-I’m sure I can pull something together.” He said, managing a small smile. The smile he got back from Remy was worth it. 

“Awesome! Can’t wait. I’ll pick you up at-”

“No!” Damien said quickly, startling Remy. He really,  _really_  didn’t need Remy meeting his dad. “I-I mean…Can we just meet here or something?” 

Remy furrowed his eyebrows but nodded slowly, slightly confused.

“Uh…sure.” Remy quickly checked the time on his phone before groaning quietly. “Shit. I’m gonna be late for bio. See you later?”

Before Damien could respond, Remy was gone and sauntering down the hallway like he owned the place. Damien sighed quietly before looking around the empty hall and allowing himself to grin and do a little happy dance.

That went  _way_ better than expected. 

* * *

“…and then Kenneth said that  _he_ thought it was unfair that I got to sing the solo at homecoming even though everyone knows my voice is  _much_  more suited towards James Bay than his is!” Roman ranted, lying back on his bed and tossing a cushion up and down as Virgil sat at his desk, scrolling through tumblr on his phone. Virgil huffed out a quiet chuckle before shaking his head.

“Kenneth is a dick.” He said simply, not looking up from his phone. 

Roman sat up and looked at his boyfriend, narrowing his eyes. Virgil’s eyes flitted up to meet Roman’s and he raised an eyebrow.

“…Yes?” He asked. 

Roman crossed his legs and examined Virgil slowly, his eyes following the curves and contours of his body. Virgil blushed and crossed his arms. 

“What are you gonna wear to homecoming?” Roman asked, grinning suddenly. He stood up and ran to his closet. “My mama and I made my suit from scratch! I have a measuring tape here somewhere…I’ll need your measurements if we’re going to make-”

“I’m not going to homecoming.” 

Roman stopped in his tracks, his hand on the handle of his closet. He whipped around and looked at Virgil who’s chin was resting in his palm, a guilty smile on his face.

“What?” 

Virgil sighed and stood up, walking closer to Roman and sitting on his side of the bed. 

“I don’t…I don’t do dances.” Virgil said with a shrug, toying with Roman’s bedspread. “Never have, never will.”

Roman’s heart sank.

“Oh.” He said quietly, taking his hand off of his closet door and rubbing it up and down his thigh awkwardly. “Um…can I ask why?” 

Virgil looked at Roman and sighed, taking his hand and pulling him to sit next to him on the bed. 

“When I was a freshman, I was a lot different than I am now.” Virgil mumbled, his eyes trained on where his thumb was rubbing Roman’s knuckles. “I was quiet and shy. I got picked on a lot.”

Roman frowned and pressed a gentle kiss to Virgil’s hand in an attempt to comfort him. 

“Dances were…too much to handle. You spend a few torturous hours in an enclosed room with tons of people you don’t like while loud,  _bad_  music plays over the speakers. Everyone’s trying to hook up with one another and the lights are too dark and…” Virgil shook his head and closed his eyes, rubbing his forehead. Just  _thinking_ about it was giving him a headache. 

Roman bit his lip and rested his chin on Virgil’s shoulder. He felt sad that he wasn’t ever going to know what going to a dance with a date felt like but…he was more sad that dances made his boyfriend feel so  _helpless_. 

“I’m sorry, baby.” Roman said quietly, pressing a kiss to his shoulder. “If…If you don’t wanna go, we don’t have to. I’ll give my solo to  _Kenneth_.” Virgil laughed and shook his head.

“No, no…I want you to go. You’ll have an amazing time with everyone.” Virgil said, turning his head so he could nuzzle their noses together. “And I’m sure you’ll send me videos of your performances. I’ll be waiting by the phone all night.” 

Roman smiled sadly and leaned forward, pressing a gentle kiss to Virgil’s lips. 

“If you’re sure…” 

“I’m sure.” Virgil said firmly, squeezing Roman’s hand. “I want you to go and have a good time. It’s our senior year after all, you’re not gonna get another homecoming dance.”

Roman smiled and nodded, resting his cheek against the soft fabric of Virgil’s shirt. 

“Okay.” 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!! the end of the fic is in sight guys!! a couple more chapters to go i think! i don’t have a number yet for exactly how many chapters until the epilogue but i think this story is definitely reaching a close soon! this chapter was actually rather easy to write even tho i did write it while dealing with a migraine. hope y’all liked this chapter!
> 
> comments and kudos are much appreciated! And y'all can follow my Tumblr at @romanticsanders if you want! 
> 
> \- Brit xx


	15. Chapter 15

Roman was mad at him. Or…upset. Or sad? Virgil didn’t know, he could just tell that Roman wasn’t happy. 

He knocked on Roman’s door that morning, two coffee’s in hand. His nerves were worse than when he’d first asked Roman out. 

He put on a polite smile when a tall, large man with dusty blonde hair and a confused frown opened the door. 

“H-Hi! My name is Virgil, um…I’m here to pick up Roman for school?” Virgil said, trying to keep his voice from shaking. The man furrowed his eyebrows and scratched the back of his neck. The man seemed to be wearing a mechanic’s coveralls with a name tag stitched to the left side of his chest. Chris, it read. 

“Virgil…right, um…Roman’s coming down soon, you know how he gets with his…hair product and such.” Chris said, managing a small smile, though Virgil could tell he looked mildly uncomfortable. “D’you wanna wait inside?” 

“Uh-”

“Christopher, who’s at the do- Virgil!” Virgil peered behind Christopher and saw Angela, a wide grin on her face. She was already wearing her scrubs and had her hospital name tag pinned to her shirt. “Oh, come in  _Chulo,_ have you met my husband, Christopher?”

Virgil smiled and raised one of his hands that was holding Roman’s coffee cup.

“It’s um…It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Kingsley.” Virgil said, swallowing thickly. His hands were sweating.  _Shit, where was Roman?_

“Good to meet you, Virgil. Christopher Kingsley.” Chris said gruffly, nodding. He looked slightly uncomfortable but…still, there was something kind about him.

“Virgil!” 

Virgil peered behind Christopher and saw his boyfriend walking down the stairs, dressed impeccably and hair done perfectly. 

“Morning. I…I thought I’d surprise you with coffee and pick you up.” Virgil said quietly, lifting the coffee in his hand. Roman looked surprised but smiled, walking down the steps to meet Virgil. The sight of his boyfriend relaxed him instantly but…there was something about Roman’s smile that seemed  _off._

“You’re so sweet, thank you.” He turned around and looked at his father, smiling awkwardly. “…Morning, dad.”

“Morning, son.” Christopher said, raising his coffee mug before taking a sip, his eyes falling to the floor.

The silence hung in the air for a minute before Roman looped his arm through Virgil’s.

“Um…we should go. We’re gonna be late.” He said quietly, grabbing his messenger bag before slipping on his boots.

“But what about breakfast,  _Mijo_?” Angela asked, eyebrows knitted together. She stood next to Christopher and placed a hand on his back. Roman smiled tightly.

“Not hungry. I have a granola bar anyway.” Roman shrugged before waving at both of his parents and dragging Virgil out of the house.

They entered Virgil’s car and Roman sighed, taking a slow sip of his coffee and staring at his front door. Virgil bit his lip and placed a hand on Roman’s. 

“Are you okay?”

Roman sighed quietly, and scratched his forehead.

“Yeah. It’s just…I love my dad and he loves me but…sometimes I feel like he doesn’t know how to… _handle_  me.” Roman mumbled, sitting back in his seat and rubbing his forehead. “It’s fine. He’s trying but sometimes it doesn’t feel like enough, you know?”

Virgil nodded sympathetically and held his hand, pressing a kiss to his knuckles gently. 

“I’m sorry.” 

Roman shrugged, eyeing the plastic lid on his coffee cup.

“That’s okay,” He mumbled, squeezing Virgil’s hand. “You make it better.”

Virgil managed a light smile before pulling out of Roman’s driveway, though he didn’t know why Roman’s statement didn’t make him feel any better.

* * *

“…and you’re not gonna chicken out like you did yesterday?” Damien asked, not looking up from where he was texting Remy. Logan flushed a bright red and sputtered. 

“I-I did not ‘chicken out’!” Logan exclaimed, looking around the hall to see if anyone was looking. “It…this may come as a surprise to you but…being romantic is rather difficult for me.”

Damien raised an incredulous eyebrow.

“Oh, really?” He said sarcastically. Logan glared.

“You’ve been spending too much time with Remy.” This time it was Damien’s turn to blush. Logan simply fixed his tie and smoothed down his already-gelled hair. “But…when I ask Patton to homecoming, I want it to be special! Romantic. I need to do it at the right time.”

Damien looked up momentarily and smirked, placing his hands on Logan’s shoulders.

“No time like the present.” He said before spinning Logan around and pushing him in Patton’s direction. 

Logan spun around ungracefully and ended up bumping right into Patton. Patton’s arms instinctively came up to bracket Logan’s elbows and he grinned.

“Logan! Funny  _bumping_ into you here!” Patton said with a cheeky smile, dropping his hands from Logan’s elbows. Logan melted. “What’s up?”

Logan straightened himself up and cleared his throat. He looked down at Patton’s hands which were now hanging by his sides.

_I should take his hand. That’s…romantic, right?_

Logan reached forward and gently took Patton’s left hand in his right. Patton’s eyes widened. 

“Um…th-there’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you, Patton.” Logan said, his head slightly bowed. He found himself unable to actually  _look_  at Patton, despite the kind, earnest look on his face. 

“Yes, Lo?” Patton asked quietly, squeezing Logan’s hand. 

Logan finally looked up and smiled at Patton shyly, a look that Patton had never seen on Logan’s face before. 

“Will you do me the honour of…accompanying me to the homecoming dance? I will pick you up and we can have dinner beforeha-”

“Oh, I’d love to go!” Patton cut him off before letting go of Logan’s hand and looping his arms around Logan’s neck, pulling him in for a tight hug. Logan startled before his arms came up to wrap around Patton’s waist. 

“F-Fantastic!” Logan said, clearing his throat as Patton unwound his arms from his neck and Logan did the same. “Um…I’m sure you have to get to class but I will message you regarding travel arrangements.”

Patton giggled.

“I look forward to it!” He said, waving at Logan before walking past him and off to class, an extra spring in his step. 

Logan grinned and walked back to his locker where Damien was watching with a cocky smirk. 

“Not a word.” Logan said before shutting his locker and readjusting his backpack, giving Damien a significant look before walking off to class, Damien laughing quietly behind him.

* * *

“Roman! Just the man we wanted to see.” Logan said as he spotted Roman walking, alone, towards their lunch table. Remy, Patton, and Virgil hadn’t yet arrived so it was just Damien, Logan, and Roman for now. 

Roman shot Logan a half-hearted smile and sat down.

“We were just talking about plans for homecoming.” Logan said, pulling out his phone and showing Roman a website he’d just found. “I figure since there will be six of us going, we could easily rent a…limousine. Now, it may be frivolous but this  _is_ a once in a lifetime opp-” 

“Virgil isn’t going to homecoming.” Roman cut Logan off before he could say anything else. Logan stopped abruptly and looked at Damien who’d paused eating his sandwich. 

“Whaf ‘o ‘ou ‘ean?” Damien asked around a mouthful of bread, ham, lettuce, and tomato. Roman wrinkled his nose. 

“I  _mean_ , Virgil told me he doesn’t want to go and…I’m respecting his wishes.” Roman said, sighing. “I will still be going, just…alone.” 

As soon as he’d said it, Roman could  _feel_ the sympathy coming off of his two best friends in waves. He didn’t like it.

“I’m fine with going alone! I’ll have you guys, right? Just like every dance we’ve been to up ‘til this moment!” Roman said, trying to feign his enthusiasm. He  opened a small ziploc bag full of grapes and popped one into his mouth. He eyed Logan and Damien who were both looking at him with guilty expressions. “Wha’?” 

“Actually, I have a date.” Logan said, avoiding Roman’s eyes.

“Ditto.” Damien mumbled. 

Roman chewed on his grape slowly before swallowing, nodding.

“Okay…I guess I can go with Patton and Re-” Roman looked up Damien and Logan who were looking sheepishly at him. He sighed. “You guys are going with Patton and Remy?”

They both nodded slowly. 

“But…we’ll still have a good time at the dance together. Don’t let the fact that we have dates sway you.” Logan said, with a shrug. “We’re all still friends here.”

Roman opened his mouth to respond but stopped himself when he saw Virgil, Patton, and Remy walking towards him. He smiled when Virgil sat next to him, leaning into Virgil when his boyfriend pecked his cheek lightly..

“Afternoon.” Roman said, looking at Virgil quickly before beginning to meticulously unpack his lunch. Virgil frowned.

“What were you guys talking about?” Patton asked, sitting next to Logan. Logan flushed. 

“We were talking about ho-”

“Nothing! We weren’t talking about anything.” Roman said quickly, popping another grape in his mouth. 

Virgil eyed his boyfriend as he unscrewed the cap off of his chocolate milk. 

“Well…suspicious much.” Remy remarked, raising an eyebrow and giving Roman a scrutinising look.  

Roman glared at Remy who just stuck his tongue out playfully. He turned back to Virgil and smiled.

“How was class?” 

Virgil returned his smile but the unsettling feeling from that morning was back, sitting heavy in his chest. 

* * *

The heavy feeling persisted for most of the day ahead, until after school when Virgil met Roman in the parking lot. 

He saw his boyfriend walking towards his car from the gates and grinned. Roman waved and sped up, walking towards his boyfriend and pressing a light kiss to his lips.

“Thank you for waiting, my love.” Roman said. Virgil laughed at the nickname and shook his head.

“I couldn’t just drive home and abandon you at school. I drove you here.” Virgil replied with a quiet laugh. 

“It’s still romantic.” Roman said with a shrug, grinning and walking to the passengers side. “Wanna take a little pitstop at O’Connor’s before we get home?” 

“Sounds great.” Virgil said, unlocking the car and sliding in. Virgil pulled out of the parking lot and began driving to O’Connors, the silence almost suffocating them both.

“So-”

“You’re mad at me.” Virgil said quickly, cutting Roman off. Roman furrowed his eyebrows and turned to look at Virgil.

“What? Where did you get that idea?” 

“So, you’re not denying it.” Virgil said, his grip on the steering wheel tightening. Roman rolled his eyes and sat back in his seat.

“I  _am_ denying it because it’s not true. Why would you think I’m mad at you?”

“Because I told you I didn’t want to go to homecoming and you’re disappointed that we can’t go together.” Virgil mumbled quickly, his eyes glued to the stoplight they were now at. 

“That’s absurd! I’m not mad at you. I may be disappointed but I’m not angry!” 

“What, disappointed that your boyfriend can’t handle a silly little school dance?” Virgil retaliated, the words falling out of his mouth before he could stop them. 

“I…That is not at all what I said! You’re putting words into my mouth.” Roman retaliated, startled. “I’m not sure where this is coming from bu-”

“You’ve been acting weird all day! When you look at me it’s like all you see is…a disappointment!” Virgil exclaimed. Roman scoffed. 

“That is not at all what I think of when I look at you. I’m disappointed, yes, but I understand your reasons for not going despite…never mind.” Roman mumbled, crossing his arms. “Can we just drop this please? And I don’t think I’m in the mood for coffee anymore, can you just take me home?” 

Virgil sighed and looked out his window, seeing the sign for O’Connors just up ahead. He nodded and turned into a different street, driving Roman home instead.

Well…that had gone  _great_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hhhh i feel horrible this took so long to write and i’m SORRY but i’ve been swamped in school work. On the plus side: we’re approaching the last one or two chapters yay!! however that doesn’t mean the fic is ending, i was actually thinking about making it a series if that interests anyone!
> 
> hope y'all enjoyed the chapter and sorry it took so long!
> 
> comments and kudos are much appreciated as always and if you want you can follow me on Tumblr and read updates there too! @RomanticSanders
> 
> \- Brit xx


	16. Chapter 16

Virgil dropped Roman off at his place and they sat in silence. Roman’s eyes were down, looking at his hands, whilst Virgil was looking out of the window dismissively.

“Um…thanks for dropping me off at home.” Roman mumbled quietly. Virgil nodded. 

“No prob.” He replied, turning to look at Roman who’s gaze was fixed firmly on his fingers. “Roman, can we talk about this?”

“What’s there to talk about? You don’t want to go to homecoming and I’m fine with that. But apparently you think I’m so shallow that I’d care more about having a date to a dance than I do about my own boyfriend so…” Roman said, keeping his head down. “I have homework.”

Before Virgil could say anything more, Roman was out of the car and walking up the steps into his house. Virgil watched sadly.

_Even his angry stomps are cute._

Virgil shook his head before pulling out of the driveway and driving home. He supposed he had a lot to think about.

* * *

 

 

* * *

 

Not talking to Roman after talking pretty much  _every day_  for the past few months felt foreign to Virgil. Like he didn’t know who he was without him. 

But as Virgil laid in bed, staring at his phone and begging it to light up, he realised just how different he and Roman really were. They had so little common interests and the ones they did share, they bickered about constantly (Virgil thought Ursula had been a smart business woman and Roman  _strongly_ disagreed). 

What was their relationship, really? Sure, it felt nice being together. Virgil loved Roman and he didn’t doubt that his boyfriend loved him too but...were they built to last? Or was this just a passionate high school romance destined to fizzle out as soon as college came about? 

Virgil shut his eyes tight and rubbed them, trying to force those thoughts out of his brain. He loved Roman. He wanted to be with Roman! At this point, he felt as though...maybe his love for Roman was stronger than his anxiety over a stupid school dance. 

Should he just give in?

* * *

 

Roman got home and slammed his door shut, flopping onto his bed and cuddling his pillow to his chest.

Was this the end? Maybe Roman had been just a tad overdramatic earlier in the car but...did Virgil really think that he cared about a dance more than he cared about him? Was that the kind of person Virgil thought he was?

Roman gnawed on his lower lip as he eyed his hand crafted suit, hanging in a dust cover on the door of his closet. He and his mother had spent  _weeks_  cutting out patterns, finding the right fabric, measuring, sewing, adjusting...but now all Roman saw when he looked at it was guilt. His own selfishness had quite possibly gotten in the way of the best thing that had ever happened to him. 

Way to go, Roman.

* * *

 

“...so Logan said the limo is gonna pick us up at his place so should we meet at his at 6?” Patton asked, his planner opened and a bright pink pen in his hand. Logan eyed his...friend? boyfriend? To be honest, Logan wasn’t sure what they were but...he knew he liked Patton. A lot.

“Sounds good.” Remy said around the lollipop stick in his mouth. Damien gave Patton a thumbs up in response. The only person who hadn’t said anything all day was Roman.

They all looked at Roman expectantly who was staring at his phone, almost as if he was trying to will a text message to appear. 

“Roman?” Logan asked. Roman looked up at his friends who were all looking at him. 

“What?” 

“The limo is picking us up at Lo’s at 6. Cool?” Damien asked. 

At the mention of homecoming, Roman’s heart plummeted in his chest. He still hadn’t heard from Virgil all day. Patton told him that he was feeling sick that morning and decided not to go to school but...Roman couldn’t help but feel like his disappearance was all his fault.

“Yeah...cool.” Roman mumbled, taking a big swig of his chocolate soy milk and opening his chat history with Virgil. 

**Me to Virgie <3 <3, 8:37am:**

_Hey Patton told me that you were feeling sick this morning. Are you okay? Do you want me to come over after school and bring you some soup?_

No reply. He sighed and stared at his phone before typing out another message.

**Me to Virgie <3 <3, 12:58pm:**

_I’m sorry about yesterday. I overreacted._

**Me to Virgie <3 <3, 12:58pm:**

_I love you. I don’t care about homecoming. I care about you._

Roman sighed and stuffed his phone in his pocket. He didn’t know what to  _do._  This was his senior year! He’d never get to go to another homecoming dance after this. He looked around the lunch table at his friends who were all excitedly talking about the dance and at the posters and decorations hung up all around the cafeteria advertising the homecoming dance but...instead of the usual excitement, he felt...nothing.

What did any of this excitement and colour mean without someone to share it with? 

* * *

 

Roman walked into show choir practice that afternoon and dropped his bag heavily on one of the chairs, slumping low in his seat. He heard the other members filing in one by one and he sighed heavily. He didn’t want to deal with any of this today.

“Afternoon, everyone!” Mrs. Wong burst into the auditorium excitedly. She had a pile of sheet music in her hand and her reading glasses were on crooked. “I hope everyone is excited to perform at the dance tomorrow night! It’s going to be...um...lit?” 

Roman let out a quiet chuckle and sat up straighter, smiling half-heartedly at Valerie who took a seat next to him. 

“Mrs. Wong! I have something to say.”

Roman rolled his eyes so hard he felt like they were gonna fall right out. Kenneth Masterson was quite possibly the most annoying person in the club, nay...the world. Roman looked at Kenneth who was sitting there with his hand straight up and he wrinkled his nose. 

“Oh! Alright, Kenneth, what is it?” Mrs. Wong said, placing her sheet music on the stage and righting her glasses. “Is this about-”

“It’s about Roman’s solo.” 

The group gave out a collective groan and Kenneth shot them all death glares, though really it was like being barked at by a small dog. Not very effective. 

“I just think that  _my_ voice would be best suited for-”

“Oh, my God, if I give you the solo will you stop talking?!” Roman exclaimed. He was at his breaking point. He looked at Kenneth who looked both offended at having been cut off and surprised that his plan had worked.

“I-I suppose so.”

“You can have it. I don’t care about this stupid dance anymore.” Roman muttered, grabbing his bag and standing up. Mrs. Wong sputtered.

“B-But, Roman, the dance is tomorrow.” Mrs. Wong said, eyebrows knitted in concern. “And you and Kenneth are in different vocal groups, I-”

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Wong, but...I’m suddenly not feeling so up to perform.” Roman said guiltily, a heavy weight setting on his stomach. “I don’t think I want a solo anymore at all. Terrence can take my part in the group number. He and I are in the same vocal group.” 

Mrs. Wong paused before nodding and taking a pencil out of her braid and writing something down in her notebook.

“Alright, Roman, if you’re sure.” She said, sighing but giving him a smile. “Now, is everyone ready to rehearse?” 

The whole group cheered except for Roman who walked towards Mrs. Wong. 

“Mrs. W, can...I’m not feeling well. Can I go home?” Roman asked quietly. Mrs. Wong frowned sympathetically and patted his arm gently.

“Of course, Roman, go on. Email me if you need anything.” Roman smiled at her gratefully before walking out of the auditorium. 

* * *

 

Virgil laid in bed underneath his covers, his blankets pulled up over his head. He’d been trying to shut out the entire world for a couple of hours. He knew the dance was tomorrow and he just couldn’t face Roman, at least not right now. 

Should he just...go to the dance anyway? Even the thought of going made him shudder but...he loved Roman. This dance meant a lot to him. 

He heard a knock at his bedroom door and he groaned, rolling over in bed. The door opened and he saw Roman standing there, looking cute as ever and fiddling with his bag strap nervously.

“Um...Remy let me up.” Roman said quietly. Virgil sat up in bed and ran a hand through his hair.  _God,_  he must’ve looked like a mess. He hadn’t gotten out of bed all day. 

“Hey.” Virgil said quietly, his voice rough and low from sleep. Roman tried not to show how much that affected him. 

“Hi.” Roman said softly, walking towards Virgil and sitting on the edge of his bed gingerly. Virgil moved slightly to make room. 

“How are you feeling?” Roman asked quietly. Virgil shrugged. 

“Fine. How was school?”

Roman let out a slow sigh and shook his head.

“Miserable.” He mumbled, “I-I’m so sorry, Virgil. I overreacted yesterday and I-I love you. I love you more than I love any stupid dance.” 

Virgil smiled lightly at that and grabbed Roman’s hand.

“I love you too. And I’m sorry too, I don’t think you’re shallow.” Virgil replied, squeezing Roman’s hand gently. “You’re going to have an amazing time at homecoming tomorrow. I’ll ask Patton to film your performance and we can watch it together.” 

Roman wrinkled his nose and shook his head.

“I’m not performing anymore.” At Virgil’s confused look, Roman sighed and continued. “I...I wasn’t feeling up to a performance and I told  _Kenneth_ he could have my solo.” 

“Oh, I’m sorry babe.” Virgil said quietly, “But you and the guys will still have the best time and then after you can call me and we’ll talk all about it.”

Roman moved on the bed so he was sat next to Virgil and rested his head on his shoulder, nodding.

“Yeah...I’m sure we will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So next chapter is the final chapter of Is It Still Me That Makes You Sweat! Thank y’all so much for all of your support and i really hope you enjoy this penultimate chapter before the finale!
> 
> also i’m sorry this came so late this chapter was so hard to write for some reason?? I hope you guys enjoy it anyway!!
> 
> Comments and kudos are always much appreciated and if y'all wanna get more updates you can follow me on tumblr @romanticsanders! <3 
> 
> \- Brit xx


	17. Chapter 17

Roman eyed himself in the mirror, for once in his life not liking what he saw.

Of course, there wasn’t an issue with his outfit. It fit perfectly. A white button up shirt with red buttons paired with red pants that had a subtle floral pattern to them with a red floral tie to match. He and his mom had spent hours measuring and cutting each piece to make sure it was  _perfect_. 

But now, it felt anything but perfect.

* * *

He sighed and straightened his tie before taking a seat on his bed. This was supposed to be the best night of his high school life but here he was, sat at home sad and alone. 

Roman grabbed his phone off of his nightstand and sighed when he saw texts from Logan and Virgil.  

**_LoLo SandiePants to Me, 6:01pm:_ **

_Text me when you get here._

_**Virgie <3 to Me, 5:59pm:** _

_have fun tonight bb! i bet you look handsome as hecc <3 _

_**Virgie <3 to Me, 6:00pm:** _

_love u send pics x_

Roman sighed and rubbed the back of his neck slowly. He texted Virgil back a simple heart before opening his text history with Logan.

**_Me to ** _LoLo SandiePants_** , 6:01pm:_ **

_change of plans. i ripped a seam in my shirt so i’m gonna be late. i’ll drive myself to school and meet y’all there. have fun in the limo!_

He sighed and turned off his phone. He was really doing this.

* * *

Logan stared at himself in the mirror and smiled. He wasn’t one to gloat but...he looked good in his sleek, simple navy blue suit. He had on a light blue tie - simply because he liked the colour, not because it was the colour of a certain someone’s eyes - with a subtle diamond pattern. He even had a boutonniere ready to give to Patton.

He took the box in his hands and looked at it, breathing in slow and deep. Tonight held a lot of high stakes for him. He just hoped it would go well. 

He’d never really felt this way about anyone before. This relationship business had always been Roman’s wheelhouse. Logan preferred to stick with facts and figures. It hurt less that way.

But then Patton blew into his life like a cool breeze on a hot summers day and Logan found himself hooked. He couldn’t explain the way he felt all of a sudden. He just  _knew_ he wanted to spend as much time with Patton as physically possible.

“Logan, your pretty friend is here!” Logan’s eyebrows shot up when he heard his little brother’s voice carry from the bottom of the steps. 

“Thomas!” Logan grabbed the box, fled his room, and rushed down the stairs, his cheeks bright pink. “What did mom tell you about opening the door? You’re still too short to reach the peephole, anyone could’ve been out there!”

Thomas pouted, his hand dangling off of the doorknob. Patton stood at the doorway, eyes wide and a nervous smile on his face. Logan gave him a small wave and a nervous laugh before walking up to his little brother.

“M’sorry.” Thomas mumbled, kicking at the carpet with his foot gently. “I got excited.”

 Logan laughed quietly and ruffled Thomas’ hair, making the younger boy giggle.

“It’s...okay. Just don’t do it again, okay?” Thomas nodded defiantly before looking back at Patton who waved at Thomas happily.

“Hi! My name is Thomas Sanders and I’m 6-years-old.” Thomas said loudly. Patton laughed and stepped into the house, closing the door behind him. 

“Nice to meet you, Thomas, I’m Patton. I’m your brother’s...friend.” Patton paused at the word friend, his eyes leaving Thomas to look at Logan who was still flushed bright pink. Were they friends? Or...was there something more there? Dear  _God,_ Patton hoped there was something more there.

“Thomas, why don’t you go upstairs and see if mom needs help with her grading?” Logan said, grabbing hold of Thomas’ shoulders and turning him in the direction of the stairs. Thomas giggled and wriggled out of his brother’s hold, running to the staircase.

“Okay! Bye Logie!” 

Logan watched his brother go and cringed at the nickname. He slowly turned to face Patton who’s eyes were wide with glee.

“Don’t-”

“Logie?” Patton asked tentatively, grinning. Logan sputtered and hid his face in his hands. “That...is adorable. Your brother is the cutest.” Patton paused, taking in Logan’s embarrassed expression. “But not as cute as you.”

Logan grinned embarrassedly and scoffed, shaking his head. They looked at each other and smiled. 

“Um...Patton, I actually had something I wanted to ask you.” Logan said quickly. If he didn’t do this now, he was sure he’d lose his nerve. Patton looked up curiously. 

“Oh, okay. What’s up?” Patton asked. Logan reached out for Patton’s hand and led him to the couch, his grip on the boutonniere box tightening. 

“Patton, I...I enjoy your company quite a bit.”  Logan started, looking up and gazing into Patton’s bright eyes. “And...I’m not very good at...romance.”

Patton chuckled quietly but squeezed Logan’s hand. 

“But it would mean the world to me if you would consider being...my boyfriend.” Logan said, offering Patton a gentle smile. He took the box out from behind him and revealed the boutonniere, handing it to him.

Patton grinned, his heart leaping and flipping in bounds. 

“Logan, I would love nothing more.” Patton said quietly, taking the boutonniere and pinning it onto his lapel gently. He looked up into Logan’s eyes and grinned before inching forward ever so slightly.

Their lips met and it felt... _perfect._

* * *

**_Remy Alexander to Me, 6:13pm:_ **

_are you sure u don’t want me to pick u up and drive u to logan’s?_

Damien stared at the text and nibbled on his lip, thinking about what would happen if Remy, God forbid, did decide to come to his house. His father was downstairs and he  _really_  did not want those two worlds colliding. 

**_Me to Remy Alexander, 6:13pm:_ **

_i’m sure. i’ve been to logan’s a bunch of times so i’ll just meet you there._

**_Remy Alexander to Me, 6:13pm:_ **

_kk. can’t wait to see you. i bet u look gr8 x_

Damien stared at the ‘x’ at the end of Remy’s message and he flushed bright red. He wasn’t sure what the current state of their relationship was. It  _felt_ like Remy had been flirting with him for the past few weeks...and he’d just assumed that they’d be going to the dance together. Were they boyfriends? Did Remy think they were? Part of Damien hoped Remy thought they were just so he could avoid the awkward ‘what are we’ conversation.

Damien stared at his reflection in the mirror one last time, smoothing the hair peeking out from under his black panama hat. He and Remy had decided to coordinate their outfits around their collective love of the colour yellow. Damien had on a white button-up coupled with a mustard yellow tie he’d found at a thrift store and his best (only) pair of black slacks. He looked mismatched slightly but...he hoped it was in a stylish way. 

He fixed his hat one more time before grabbing his wallet and keys and lightly padding down the steps. His father and mother were sat in the living room. Daniel was reading the newspaper whilst his wife sat, knitting beside him. He tensed his jaw and grit his teeth when he reached the bottom and walked towards the door. 

  _“¿A dónde crees que vas?”_ Damien’s father asked, not looking up from his newspaper.  **(Translation:**   ** _Where do you think you’re going?_ )**

Damien sucked on his teeth and kept his eyes fixed on the floor. 

“ _Hay una fiesta en mi escuela. Voy con amigos_.” He replied, crossing his arms.  **(Translation: _There’s a party at my school. I’m going with friends._ )**

Daniel clicked his tongue and shook his head. 

“ _Tienes que estudiar, no debería pierdas el tiempo en fiestas estúpidas._ ” Daniel replied, lowering his reading glasses and shooting Damien a pointed glare.  **(Translation: _You have to study. You shouldn’t be wasting your time at stupid parties._ )**

 _“_ Daniel,  _solo déjalo divertirse, por favor! es solo una noche._ ” Margarita said, placing a hand on her husband’s forearm. Daniel rolled his eyes before lifting the paper back up to his face, not saying another word. Margarita looked at Damien apologetically. He simply shrugged. “Have fun at your party,  _mijo_.”  **(Translation: _Just let him have fun! It’s only one night.”)_**

Damien gave his mother a wave before leaving his house. He momentarily pressed his back up against his front door and let out a quiet breath, shaking his head. He stuffed his hands in his pockets before unlocking his bike and beginning the ride to Logan’s house.

* * *

Damien arrived at Logan’s and climbed off of his bike, wheeling it into the large front yard and resting it against the fence. He’d always marvelled at just how different his and Logan’s lives were. It became clear to him every time he visited his house. It was ornate and large but...somehow still homey. As if an architect had looked at Logan and designed a house that...somehow felt like him. 

He walked up the porch steps when he heard a voice behind him.

“Hey, killer.” Remy greeted with a grin as he stepped out of his car. Damien turned and smiled, blushing. “You look a-may-zing!” He punctuated each syllable with a clap, making Damien laugh and roll his eyes. 

“Thanks, you look great too.” Remy placed his signature sunglasses on his head and did a silly pose for Damien, showing off his mustard yellow (silk, thank you very much) shirt, white tie, and black pants. 

Remy walked up the stairs and Damien rang the door bell. 

Logan and Patton answered the door together, their hands clasped and cheeks tinted pink. Damien and Remy raised their eyebrows and Logan rolled his eyes, allowing them both into the house.

“Where’s Roman?” Damien asked as he walked into the house. Logan checked his watch and then his phone and sighed.

“Well, Roman says that he will have to meet us there. He’s had a ‘fashion faux pas’.” Logan reported, dropping his phone back into his pocket. “Shall we go?” 

The four boys chattered amongst themselves excitedly as they all left the house, ready for a night to remember.

* * *

Roman was  _still_ home, pacing back and forth. He was supposed to have left for school 15 minutes ago and yet here he was, in his room,  _not_  showing the world his amazing ensemble and instead agonising over his boyfriend who was probably perfectly fine!

“Roman?” Roman whipped around and sighed softly when he saw his father standing at his bedroom door. “Oh, um...sorry, I didn’t know I was interrupting. You clean up good.”

Roman smiled at his father weakly and sat down on his bed, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Thanks, dad.” He murmured, fiddling with his tie. “I was just about to leave but...”

Christopher furrowed his eyebrows and sat next to his son on the bed. 

“What’s wrong?” Roman looked at his dad and sighed.

“I don’t think I wanna go to the dance anymore.” He mumbled, “Virgil isn’t going and...I don’t know, it doesn’t feel right.” 

Christopher cleared his throat and sighed. He really wasn’t good at this kind of thing...

“But, it’s fine. I know you don’t like talking about this kind of thing so-” 

“What?” Christopher raised his eyebrows and sat back to take a look at his son who looked so  _small._ “Roman, I love you. You’re my little boy! I...I haven’t been the most understanding dad but and I’m sorry for that. But you mean everything to me and I want you to be able to come to me about this kind of thing.” 

Roman looked at his father and smiled, tears threatening his vision. 

“Really?” 

Christopher smiled lovingly at him and nodded firmly. 

“Really. Now, why don’t you tell me what’s eatin’ you?” 

Roman bit his lip and leaned slightly so he was resting on his father’s arm. 

“Virgil told me he didn’t want to go to the dance which is fine but...now I feel wrong going. I-I feel like I’m abandoning him which is so ridiculous because he  _said_  he would be fine! Now I’m all ready for the dance and I’m wearing the suit that mom and I made and everything feels...wrong.” Roman said quietly, wiping his eyes and grimacing. Christopher wound an arm around his son’s shoulders and squeezed gently. 

“Did’ya ever think about...not going to the dance?” Christopher asked. Roman pulled away from his father, eyes wide with surprise. “I’m just saying, son, it doesn’t sound like you wanna go. Maybe...maybe your heart would be happier elsewhere, you know?” 

Roman pondered that thought silently and nodded. 

“These things seem like big deals now because they are. And I know how excited you’ve been for this shindig but...you know, dreams and priorities can change. Maybe this is one of those times.” Christopher said with a shrug. “What seems more important to you right now: Going to the dance or seeing Virgil?” 

Roman bit his lip and rubbed his hands along his pants slowly, nodding. 

“I think I know which one.” Roman said, his lips lifting into a soft smile. He turned to his father and really looked, feeling like he was actually seeing him for maybe the first time since he’d came out. “Thanks, dad.” 

Christopher beamed right back at him and stood up, pulling his son into a tight hug. 

“I love you, Roman. Now...get out and do what you have to do.” Christopher said, releasing Roman from his grip and patting his cheek gently. As Christopher left the room, Roman grabbed his phone and checked the time. The night was still young and he had to prepare.

* * *

Virgil was fine. He was! He didn’t really care that all of his friends were at some lame dance while he was at home watching New Girl on Netflix. He didn’t mind that his friends were probably dancing up a storm and making memories while he scarfed down yet another bowl of popcorn. 

He really didn’t care. 

He sighed and glanced at his phone, hoping to see a picture or a text from Roman. Nothing. 

_Stop feeling sorry for yourself. You did this to yourself, you’re the one who said he didn’t want to go!_

Virgil wrinkled his nose and tried to block out the tiny voice in his head by clicking ‘next episode’ and snuggling down into his covers. Downstairs he could hear some muffled voices speaking and the door closing but he ignored it. It was probably his mom and her book club friends.

He tried to focus on Nick and Jess’ antics when he heard slow footsteps climbing up the stairs and approaching his door. He sighed and held back a groan. He’d told his mom countless times, he was fine! He was  _not_ lonely and definitely didn’t wanna join her book club tonight. 

The door began to open and Virgil kept his eyes glued to the screen. 

“Mom, I’m fine, you don’t have to keep checking up on me.” 

“I like her. Your mom seems nice.” 

Virgil looked up at the voice and his eyes widened. There, stood Roman in his homecoming outfit, holding a bouquet of red roses, leaning against his doorjamb.

“R-Roman, what are you doing here?” Virgil asked, running his hands through his hair and sitting up in his bed. “You’re supposed to be at the dance.”

Roman smiled softly at Virgil and stepped into his room.

“I know where I’m supposed to be.” Roman said quietly, his eyes shining. “I’m supposed to be right here with you.” 

Virgil blushed and placed his laptop next to him on the bed, getting out from under the covers and standing up. 

“You look amazing.” Virgil said softly, admiring Roman’s outfit. Roman blushed but grinned happily at the attention. “I didn’t know you were coming...otherwise I would’ve changed out of my pyjamas.” 

Roman looked down at the oversized batman t-shirt and sweatpants Virgil was wearing and he chuckled, shaking his head and pulling his boyfriend close.

“I think you look astounding.” Roman murmured, one hand coming up to Virgil’s waist. The other hand was still occupied, holding the bouquet. He gallantly offered the bouquet to his boyfriend and grinned. “For you, my love.” 

Virgil rolled his eyes but hid his face behind the bouquet, trying to hide his blushing cheeks and goofy smile. 

“You’re such a sap.” 

Roman grinned and took the flowers from Virgil’s hands, gently placing them on his nightstand. 

“But you love me for it.” Roman said quietly, taking both of Virgil’s hands and pulling him close. “Virgil, will you do me the honour of dancing with me?” 

Roman pulled out his phone and pressed play, grinning as [a song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-jM5zVkfLkc) began to play. 

They stood there in the middle of Virgil’s bedroom, wrapped up in one another, gently swaying to the soft guitar beats and the soothing tones of Tatiana Manaois’ voice. 

* * *

 

As the four boys arrived at the school, they still couldn’t find any sign of Roman anywhere. Logan furrowed his eyebrows as he looked around the parking lot, hoping to see Roman’s car.

“That’s strange, he said he would meet us here. I’ll send him a text message.” Logan said, pulling out his phone and sending Roman a text. “Let’s head inside in the meantime?”

The four of them all cheered and began entering the dance, taking in the decorations and the dim lights and the loud music. It was everything they had imagined and somehow it felt...liberating to be there. 

Logan felt his phone vibrate in his pocket and he pulled it out, checking his notifications.

“Guys, Roman just texted!” He exclaimed, causing them all to crowd around. At opening the message, all of them cooed at the image that popped up (sans Logan who was a professional student who did  _not_ coo). 

The picture was of Roman and Virgil cuddled up together, wearing the brightest of smiles on their faces, Roman’s tie loosened and Virgil’s mouth set in a smile wider than any of them had ever seen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> T’S HERE!! THE END!! Holy smokes what a ride. Thank you so much to everyone who’s consistently read and commented and supported this fic’s life! This was my first long multichapter fic I’ve ever written and..finished. Also: because so many people replied liking the idea, i’m going to turn this fic into a series! So probably every once in a while I’ll be releasing one shots in this high school universe - it won’t always be prinxiety related but most of them will be!
> 
> I’m also accepting prompts or requests within this universe too so if you have any prompts, send them my way! I might write a sequel delving into college life but that isn’t confirmed yet. Thank you all so much for reading! <3
> 
> Comments and kudos are much appreciated! Thank you so much for all the kind words, it really means a lot and has honestly really motivated me to keep writing so thanks everyone!! 
> 
> \- Brit xx

**Author's Note:**

> This was a little idea I had tinkering around my head the other day! Usually in high school fics, Roman is the popular one and Virgil is the nervous little anxious nerd bean so I wanted to flip that around a little bit! I wanted to highlight some of the traits that the sides have that don’t normally get highlighted (like Virgil’s opinionated nature and Roman’s tendency to fall for people too quickly) so I hope this is well received!
> 
> The title is from ‘Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Have Without Taking Her Clothes Off by Panic! At The Disco
> 
> Comments and kudos are wildly appreciated! 
> 
> \- Brit xx


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